Double post.

I guess I'm making up for not blogging yesterday with a bonus post today. Some pics of more Valentine's cards (one is a little hanging card), because if you read my previous post you know what I think the world needs...more love. {Ha...I suppose some of us are now singing, "What the world needs now, is Love, sweet love".....}
But I think it's so true! Imagine if there were people 'stationed' outside the entrances of our Junior and Senior high schools who gave each student a hug and told them they were loved each day on their way to their locker to start their morning. Don't you think there might be some improved grades, or fewer fights in the halls, or maybe just a head or two held higher? I know there's that thing about appropriate touch and all, but I think it's such a basic sentiment missing in the lives of so many people in the world.
Or what about our prisons? {It's true I think more about what goes on in jail more than the average person does...at least from time to time.} I think it's so backwards in a way, that the people who end up in prison are probably the ones who need more love and affirmation than the rest of the civilized people in the nation. I can't help but think that part of the reason so many people end up behind bars is because they weren't told they were loved or appreciated or respected from a young age on up. Then they end up in a place where I'm sure it's not the first thing whispered in their ear in the morning.
Just to be clear. I'm not offering lack of affection and care as an excuse for why people commit crimes, but I just can't shake the thought that there is probably a strong correlation between the two.
Even in my own experiences I can say that it takes a lot of love and positive reinforcement- and there still aren't guarantees in life. I grew up in a secure, loving home, and still, for many years I didn't like myself that much and I had a really poor self-image {and it wasn't just because of my Olgilvie Home perms, either, Chip! (Is that how you spell Olgilvie?)}, but I really doubted my own self worth and value. I had a hard time 'fitting in' at school...and to tell you the truth, I was trying hard much of the time not to fit in. I just felt out-of-place and not sure of my purpose in life for a long time.
There it is. Out in the open for the world to see. Nitty.Gritty. didn't like herself as a young person. Okay. I liked parts of myself and my personality...but there were a lot of people who just didn't 'get me'. Does that make sense?
What I am looking back on and wrestling with in my life now is how can I do my best to help others who may be in that same position, or who I have looked down on for so long, and am learning that life wasn't always their fault. It's that inner-conflict, once again. Part of it has to do with maturing, and part of it has to do with giving back. My cards are just one small expression of what's on the inside. Maybe one day I will find a way to pour my heart out in a way that reaches the people I have always yearned to touch. {In a very appropriate way. =)}