the ache of regret.

"the stupidest thing i ever did was move back when she was happy there.
 i would have never lost her if i would have just stayed."

we are all sitting around the kitchen table looking at old photographs that you had found in your old room. my heart broke when you said those words because i looked into your eyes and saw the regret built up like a brick wall. in that moment, i would have done anything to bring back the happy ending to the broken fairy tale.

you've screwed up a lot and you know that, but what i don't think you know is--
you are a fighter and you're still strong, even when the fight has been long and weary.
your laughter warms my heart because i can hear how deep it rumbles.
you still love fiercely, even with the long goodbyes and scheduled visits.

i don't think you know how much you are loved. it's a long chain of broken communicators and even i know how messy it can get when they don't know how to say the words. but, even when the words can't seem to take form and the silence is so loud, the love is still there, even if it's a bit rusty and buried in dust. and i think it's the reason you keep coming home, no matter how many times you get lost or broken.

and they may tell you that you're breaking their hearts again, but there is a reason their hearts can still be broken. and it's the reason they drive to pick you up at the bus station even when they don't think you made the right decision. you are loved.
and don't forget about the Love that is always flowing and always fresh. it's speaking loudly, over the brokenness and it's still saying the same thing it has said since the beginning of time-- "i love you, i love you, i loved so much that i died for you. come home... please come home."
you are loved beyond measure.

and i know you're trying, trying so hard to stop running, trying so hard to fix the mess, trying to be a father, trying to get back on the right track. but just remember, you don't have to try so hard, because there is still Love.
there is always Love.

xoxo. -m