Wade - Heart talk: poetic wisdom for a better life

Thank you for downloading this Simon & Schuster ebook.

---

Get a FREE ebook when you join our mailing list. Plus, get updates on new releases, deals, recommended reads, and more from Simon & Schuster. Click below to sign up and see terms and conditions. CLICK HERE TO SIGN UP Already a subscriber? Provide your email again so we can register this ebook and send you more of what you like to read. This is dedicated to every human being who looks different, feels different, and thinks differently. I see you. I see you.

I feel you. I am you. Stay different. Our world needs the difference we will make. Dearest You, I have experienced just about every type of heartbreak that exists. The kind that happens with a romantic partner, with someone I wished were a romantic partner, with a family member, a friend, even a stranger.

Ive known the heartbreak associated with professional situations and things I aspire to: a dream that never came true, or a dream that did come true, but when it did, it wasnt meant to be. I have even broken my own heart a few times (more than a few, actually). What I have learned from having my heart in pieces is that our stories are important. They help us take our pieces and build something new. And if we build with love they can help us build something even better than we had before. When we get real and honest and raw about what we go through, we have the power to turn our words into medicine and our experiences into wisdom.

This book is a compilation of notes I have written in my apartment in New York City. It also consists of poems about loving, being, and healing that have been my life rafts when I did not know how to swim in the waters of the world. You will also find the type of good ol-fashioned heartfelt advice I would share with you if we were sitting in my home at my kitchen table (by the way, thanks, Mom, for showing me the healing power of kitchen-table conversation). I hope that in reading this book you will be reminded of your strength, reintroduced to your resilience, and reconnected with your personal power and love of self. And if you would like to treat this book less like a book and more like a friend or a companion, I would like that very much. Also, you should know that I love you.

I dont need to know you to love you. If this pile of papers found its way into your life, it is because we are meant to be. You are my tribe, and I am yours. If you have any questions, complaints, new ideas, love notes, or invitations for tea, I am here for you, talk to me: HeartTalk@cleowade.com. Love, Cleo PS: Along the way, you will find that I have written some notes in the margins throughout this book. I did this in hopes that youll feel welcomed to not treat this book too preciously.

Write in it, rip out a page and pin it on the fridge, read it front to back, or pick a page to read at random when you need a moment to yourself to recharge. Let these words show up for you however youd like. No rules.

S elf-care is how we fuel our self-love so that we are able to share our love with everyone around us. Our hearts are warm when we are able to show up with generosity, patience, and compassion for the ones we love, but we must remember that it is impossible to truly be there for others without taking care of ourselves first. We take care of ourselves by asking what our needs are.

We take care of ourselves by making healthy choices when it comes to our physical and emotional bodies. We take care of ourselves by lightening up and not being so damn hard on ourselves . At times, life seems to be one never-ending to-do list, but we must learn to disrupt the flood of lifes demands in order to replenish our energy so that we can fully show up for all of our passions and responsibilities. It does not benefit anyone when we live our lives running on fumes. Love is an action, a thing in motion.

when I let go of who I thought I had to be I could finally and powerfully become who I really am oh, to find out I had been hiding and did not know that (self-)love had been looking for me all along H ow many times have we let our fear of getting hurt or disappointed keep us from love? Love requires us to unpack our fear and pain so those feelings do not interfere with our ability to thrive in connection with others. when I let go of who I thought I had to be I could finally and powerfully become who I really am oh, to find out I had been hiding and did not know that (self-)love had been looking for me all along H ow many times have we let our fear of getting hurt or disappointed keep us from love? Love requires us to unpack our fear and pain so those feelings do not interfere with our ability to thrive in connection with others.

This process requires a level of bravery, vulnerability, and intimacy that can be scary and deeply uncomfortable, but real love only exists outside of our comfort zone. We can only step into love when we leave our fear behind. To be fearless is to be afraid of something but to do it anyway. Be fearless. Take the first step. Once we choose love, the work to maintain our love begins .

The first step in this is conquering our ego. A loving relationship is built on compromise and working with our partner to continuously evolve into our best selves. This is not possible without hard truths, tough conversations, personal growth, and behavioral shifts. The ego does not like any of this. The ego wants us to believe that we are always right and that our way of doing things is always the best way. Our spirit, on the other hand, knows that the people we love are in our life to challenge us to rise to new levels of consideration and care in all that we do.

We cannot truly choose to invest in love while our ego is present, for real love runs on selflessness , and the ego runs on selfishness.

T ake a deep breath and go for it. Dont allow the energy of procrastination to create a staleness surrounding your dreams. Breath is a sign of the body living. When you inhale deeply, you are reminded that you are alive and that every moment represents a new possibility for you to step into your destiny . Ive grown. Ive grown.Next page