An Open Letter To The Love I Hope To Have
I hope you love me even on the days I can’t smile.
Urilux / Getty Images via Canva By Madison Flatman
To the person who loves me next,
I hope you remember my favorite candy as you are walking into the grocery store. As you grab my favorite candy off the shelf, you hear a song playing from overhead.
You laugh as you remember it’s a song I’ve always loved to sing along to. You start to hum along as you pick up the rest of the things you need.
On the way home, you pass by the places we’ve explored together. You picture the way my cheeks turned cherry red as we trekked through the winter cold and the way my eyes sparkled through the summer sunset.
We’ve constantly lived a life of endless adventures, as we both know life is too short to live a life we settled for.
As you walk into the home we share, our pets greet you. You put down the groceries on the kitchen floor as you reach out to pet them. You love them unconditionally and just as much as you love me.
You reach into your bag to bring out a couple of toys for them to play with. From there, you begin to put away the groceries.
Our fridge is perfectly stocked with beverages and snacks. Our cabinet is filled with blankets and board games we’ve played.
We want to have a place where others feel welcome to come to chill out. We want our home to be as comfortable as the comfort we find in each other.
You turn on the television in the living room as you watch the evening news. Your mind can’t even begin to unravel the thought process of how unsympathetic many people are.
This makes you sad. You take a deep breath and turn off the television. You realize we are safe in each other’s presence.
You walk throughout our house as you see the pictures hanging on the wall and the decorations perfectly placed on the shelf. Every item represents our lives together but also our lives as individuals.
We’ve learned to co-exist because we want each other to love the world around us. We may not always share the same memories, but we support each other as we make them.
As you make your way to the bedroom, you see me laying there. My eyes are swollen red as I’m wrapped in a blanket. My cluttered mind focuses on you as you come into the room.
You hand me my favorite candy as you lay in bed with me. You wrap your arms around me and you don’t have to say a word because I know you love me.
I hope you love me even on the days I can’t smile.
Madison Flatman is a singer, drummer, and writer from Wisconsin, and frequent contributor to Unwritten. Her work focuses on topics of wellness, relationships, and mental health.