From: “Knuffeltje”, 28, Midwest US
To: Klaas, 37, The Netherlands

Ik hou van jou…

And I have loved you for nearly as long as I have known you.
Every day, I find a new reason to love you that much more.

You’re my heart, my soul, my everything.

Thank you for always being right there for me, for putting up with my flaws, and somehow managing to love me in spite of all of them.

Ik ben gek op jou!

With all my love,
your knuffeltje.

Elbert Hubbard:
“The love we give away is the only love we keep.”

So… Don’t Forget to Send a Love Letter to Someone Special in Your Life.

Which Gift Can Be Better Than That?

From: Die, 14, Somewhere
To: Drummy Boys, 14, In his place

I don’t know what it means
I just know
I wanna stay in your live
Still wanna listen to your sound
Still wanna look your smile from my hidding place
Still wanna write a poem bot you
Still wanna paint you in my mind
Still wanna smile cause of you

I don’t know it means

Mark Twain:
“Love seems the swiftest, but it is the slowest of all growths. No man or woman really knows what perfect love is until they have been married a quarter of a century.”

From: G. E. J. Miller, 22, Philadelphia
To: N. L. H. Baughman, 22, Philadelphia

Muse

The longing grew within my heart until
it seemed that I would be consumed. It ate
away at all I was, ’til worm and bone

were all I was. My heart grew cold and still
as every flame of passion did abate,
wherefore I wandered through the dark alone.

Your light pierced dark, your warmth began to kill
the cold, your gentle hands removed the weight
of shadow, and I saw a face unknown.

Your face. Your eyes, your smile, with love did fill
my heart. I knew that with you lay my fate,
I asked you then if you would be my own.

You pledged yourself to be forever mine,
and I myself to be forever thine.

From: Maria, 15, Manila, Philippines
To: Miguel, 15, Manila, Philippines

Maybe i’m just scared or confused.
I’m chicken shit when it comes to commitment.
I’m trying, believe me but i’m too afraid to open my heart.
I’m scared of getting hurt.
You saved me.
You became my confidante, my companion.
I have always loved you and i think the feeling is mutual
I want us to be more.
But i can’t let go of what we are.
I’m scared of what we’ll be
When everything falls apart,
Will you still be here for me?
Will we go back to the way we were?
Will you still save me?
Will you still love me?

Maria

Isha McKenzie-Mavinga:
“On reflection, one of the things I needed to learn was to allow myself to be loved.”