Love, Integrity, Trust, Compassion, Empathy

Love - that warm, comfortable, joyful feeling we have when we're with a special someone.

Integrity - doing the right thing despite the temptation to do otherwise.

Trust - feeling safe enough to allow our spirit to be unprotected in the presence of another.

Compassion - feeling gentle towards a person in need, even if we don't like them much.

Empathy - Allowing our minds to experience the sadness and fear of another as a way of understanding.

Sometimes we take love for granted. Sometimes we take integrity for granted. Is that all bad? By taking love and integrity for granted with our partner, we demonstrate a level of trust for each other. That kind of emotional exposure is what good, solid friendships and marriages are build on. Trust that's grown out of caring for each other and caring enough for ourselves that we want to do the right thing strengthens love and integrity. Love, integrity and trust help us develop compassion for each other and ultimately empathy and kindness.

It all seems so simple...love, integrity, trust, compassion, empathy. Our bond grows stronger as we exercise these character traits and it becomes easier to defend our values, our families, our homes, and our marriages against those lacking respect for those institutions. As the song goes...maybe "Love Is All We Need."