I want to be the first thing on your mind in the morning and the last image that you see before sleep.

I want to be the woman you choose.

I want you to know that I am the one you’ve dreamed of, waited for, dared to hold out for and that when you recognize that, to grab my hand and not let go.

I want to feel your love every day.

I want to know that you’d move mountains, fight a dragon and come for me because you know that my place is by your side.

I want to be the woman for whom you’d face your fears because you recognize that it is far scarier to face a lifetime without me.

I want you to be so absolutely certain about your choice that I never have to wonder.

I want to be the one that you take home to your mother. I want to be the woman whose entrance in your life causes your friends to pause and recognize that this time is different.

I want to be the one you choose. I want to be the period on your sentence.

I want to be the one you create space for in your life because a life without me seems empty.

I want you to be willing to be a fool for me, knowing you’d be a bigger fool for not trying.

I want the kind of love in Say Anything, when John Cusack stood outside with his boom box, willing to be ridiculed, rejected and run off but unwilling to walk away without at least putting his heart on display.

I’m not asking you for anything I’m not already doing for myself. I learned a long time ago that my real power was in choosing myself, learning to put myself first and how to meet my own deepest needs.

I’ve learned how to feel love(d) even when I am alone. I’ve learned how to sit in my loneliness without looking for someone or something to fill me. I’ve learned how to look at myself in the mirror and say, “I love you” and really mean it. I know exactly how to love myself lavishly and I know how to sustain myself when all around me fails.

It took me a long time to learn how to choose myself. It was a process to learn to say “no” to what didn’t serve me and to stand for what does. In that time, I allowed too many men too much space in my life when they hadn’t chosen me. Finally, I realized that I had to learn to say “no” to good enough, to allow space for great. I learned how to embrace myself completely and without reservation and I learned how to allow only those in my life who do the same.

I want you to choose me, every day. I want my presence in your life to be a precious gift, not an optional added accessory.

I want you to choose me, but it’s okay if you don’t. You have your own path, your own choices and your own free will to exercise and I will never stand in your way. I’ll never try to convince you of why you should choose me and even if you don’t choose me, I will.

Relephant read:

How to Choose a Lover.

Bonus:

~

Author: Lisa Vallejos

Editor: Travis May

Image: Flickr/Donnie Nunley; Pixabay