May all our sorrows gradually stretch our heart to be more fully open and compassionate.
May we experience a depth of caring in our lives sufficient to convince us that we are deeply and truly loved and lovable.
May we learn to respond to the persons and events in our lives less and less from the place where we are hurt, afraid, or angry, and more and more from the place where we are loved.
May we always be a safe and trustworthy place to those who entrust something of themselves to us.
May we come to see that each of us is more than our pain, and come to experience the difficulties of our lives neither as prisons or identities but as resources for strength and growth.
May we glimpse and delight in the beauty that is at the core of each of us.
May our lives unfold according to the inmost longings of our heart, and may there always be a friend or friends to share that journey.
May we know a hope that always reaches further than any hope or disappointment.
May we always be a blessing to ourselves and to one another.
Norman King, January 1, 2004
