After rereading a poem my husband had written to me for one of our wedding anniversaries many years ago, I thought, Wow, this poem is so heartwarming This, absolutely, needs to be published. My vision had been to have it printed on one of the beautiful Hallmark or American Greeting cards for other husbands around the world to purchase and also bring enjoyment to their wives, whether for special occasions or just to show their appreciation for them.

In my effort to make it happen, I obtained copyright and contacted the companies. To my disappointment, I learned that these companies employ their own writers and that material from outside sources is not accepted. Well, that information put a damper on my enthusiasm.

In the meantime, since the poem had already been on public record through the copyright office, I was contacted by one of the self-publishing companies. Because of the fact that it was just one single poem, I was told that at least ten poems would be required to get them published as a book. Well, I thought, let me get to it, and I started (what better time than during this time of social distancing and extra time on hand?) writing my own poems.

The poems were written with the purpose to spread the message that, even during this time of isolation and seemingly ever-present social unrest, love and hope still exist. With these poems, we want to provide encouragement and the assurance that not all is lost.

Through poetry, we tell our personal love story and express our faith in God, a faith that produces hope for the present and the future. And we want others to know, that they can experience that same love and hope in their own lives too.

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