My motto these days is, “don’t be careless with people’s hearts and don’t let anyone be careless with yours.”

What does it mean to care?
What does it mean to be careful with someone’s heart?

When I reach out to you to connect and tell you I care,
and you respond, reciprocate, and call back—
you are being careful with my heart and yours.
When you don’t respond, reciprocate, or call back—
you are being careless with my heart…and possibly yours as well.

When I ask you to join me for dinner or lunch and you happily accept,
and we share the intimacy of exchange and connection—
you are being careful with my heart and yours.
When you show up with no communication or for any apparent reason—
you are being careless with my heart…and possibly yours as well.

When I share with you my intimate struggles and successes,
and you walk with me through these highs and lows with an open heart—
you are being careful with my heart and yours.
When you demean my struggles and successes as if they were nothing of importance to you or to me—
you are being careless with my heart…and possibly yours as well.

When you share your journey with me and I share mine with you
and walk forth in a supportive partnership—
you are being careful with my heart and yours.
When you question my presence as if I could only have an ulterior motive in walking with you on this journey—
you are being careless with my heart….and possibly yours as well.

When you do not treat me, all of me;
this body
this mind
and my soul
and the sum of all I am
with respect—
you are being careless with my heart…and possibly yours as well.

When I continue to go to you after more hurtfulness and neglect,
then I am being careless with my heart.

I have been blessed with the spirit encased in this temple and I am its caretaker.
You and I cannot afford to be careless with such gifts.

I want so badly to love all of you and express it—
authentically, genuinely and deeply,
I want to receive your love and affection with the same intensity.

Let’s lay down the armor we put up and escape from the world to protect ourselves—
then maybe we can learn not to be careless with each other’s hearts.

~

Author: Siobhan Neilland

Image: Author’s own

Editor: Katarina Tavčar; Khara-Jade Warren