ways to break this southern girl’s heart…

she’s made up of sweet tea and poetry

Ways To Break This Southern Girl’s Heart
after Diane Lato’s “Easy Ways To Break My Heart”

– give her unsweetened tea. there are no two more terrible words to a southern girl when put together

– tell her you’re an alabama fan. you’ve gotta know that she’s gonna bleed volunteer orange ‘til the end no matter

– tell her you don’t like the mountains. her heart has east tennessee sunrises imprinted on it… and she wants to show you every sunlit, treelined, starkissed view

– turn down the volume when ‘country girl’ by ray lamontagne comes on. papa used to play it for her on the porch, and she’s gotta hear every bit of it, every time

– you wanna really crush her heart? then ask to meet her daddy. because he isn’t in her heart anymore. he was the first one who broke it, and in too many ways, long ago

– and if you wanna just completely shatter her into pieces… then try to give her an ordinary love. because she needs love like wildfire. like forever-fire. until every last southern sun sets. till the stars burn out. and to know her heart is finally safe… with you

…she needs to know that breaking her heart is the very last thing you would ever want to do.

– butterflies rising

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what if there is a life…

what if there is a life where your breathing is allowed to be so easy and the stars are allowed to be so close

what if
there is a life where
your breathing is
allowed to be so easy
and the stars are
allowed to be so close
and your heart is
allowed to run so wild
and your dreams are
allowed to burn so bright

…what if

– butterflies rising

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when you let your fear fall quiet…

who are you when you put it all down for just a moment? when you let your fear fall quiet. - butterflies rising

who are you
when you put it all down
for just a moment?
when you let your fear fall quiet.
and you let your anxious heart settle.
and you let a little trust in.
and when you let your soul breathe…
and maybe even dream a little.
what if somewhere in the way that
all feels is who you really are.
and what if there is another life in it
you’re meant to find… one where
your breathing is allowed to be so easy
and the stars are allowed to be so close
and your heart is allowed to run so wild
and your dreams are allowed to burn so. bright.
what if somewhere in the way that
all feels is what it’s meant to be like.
what if… what could it all be like?
maybe let yourself feel it,
even if for just a moment; who you are
when you let all of your fears fall away.

– butterflies rising

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you cannot love yourself and apologize for who you are at the same time…

you cannot love yourself and apologize for who you are at the same time

you cannot love yourself and apologize for
who you are at the same time… and you don’t need to say
“i’m sorry” for the way your perfect atoms find
themselves falling into place as the beautiful
universe that you are.

– butterflies rising

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that moment right before something wild and beautiful is about to happen…

that moment right before something wild and beautiful is about to happen

that moment right before something wild
and beautiful is about to happen…

it’s why that girl loves a drop… you get pulled into
that moment that holds your breath, and then the music
takes you over like you’re high on soul-driven adrenaline /
and that feeling right before a kiss… there’s that universe
that only the two of you exist in… and then the kiss takes
over your whole body like some kind of love-flavored
mescaline / it’s the let-go before the give-in / the suspension
before the collision / when we hand our head over to our
heart and let something made of magic find its way in

…she likes the way that feels… that moment right before
something wild and beautiful is about to happen.

– butterflies rising

– butterflies rising

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something wild and beautiful could happen…

that moment right before something wild and beautiful is about to happen

that moment right before something wild
and beautiful is about to happen…

it’s that moment in a song right before the drop…
you get pulled into the way it holds your breath, and then the
music takes over you like you’re high on soul-driven adrenaline /
or that feeling right before a kiss, there’s that universe that only
the two of you exist in… and then the kiss takes over your
whole body like some kind of love-flavored spark of heaven /
it’s the feeling of the let-go before the give-in / the suspension
right before the collision / it’s when we hand our head over
to our heart and let something made of magic find its way in

what if we could live our lives in more of that feeling, just
letting go of the need to control it all… maybe we could feel a
little more trust in the universe then… and maybe even
something wild and beautiful could happen.

– butterflies rising

– butterflies rising

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