Ivy Hearts
“Somewhere in your class is a quiet kid who feels seen because of you. They may never say it, but they will remember you for the rest of their lives.”
“You look after patients all day and then come home and look after our kids. You do both with the same gentle hands and the same endless patience.”
“We were not born into the same family and it has never made any difference. You found the part of me that nobody else had even noticed was there.”
“I have practiced my toast a hundred times, and I still cannot get through it dry-eyed. So here is the short version, just for you.”
“All these years on and neither of us has given a single inch about the thermostat. I could end it tomorrow by simply saying that you were right. I am not going to.”
“The summer you were seven, we planted tomatoes and you checked them every morning. You taught me that the best things take a little patience and a lot of love.”
“When our kids fall down, in any sense of the word, they run to you. You are their soft place to land, and their biggest cheerleader.”
“There is a new little person in our home, and they already adore you. So do I, more than ever, after everything you did to bring them here.”
“The kids will tell you today that you are the best mom in the world. For once, I hope you believe them, because they are absolutely right.”
“When we run into your former students, they always light up when they see you. I know exactly how they feel, because I still do the same thing.”
“Stand tall, even if you fall. Take pride in how far you've come. Have faith in how far you can go. But don't forget to enjoy the journey along the way.”
“At three in the morning, with the baby finally asleep, I look over at you. And I think that I am the luckiest man in the whole world.”
“Someday when the pages of my life end, you will be one of the most beautiful chapters. Stand tall, even if you fall. When life tries to knock you down, this old lion will always have your back.”
“I am grateful for a lot of things, and the day you were born is at the top of the list. Without it, I would never have known what it feels like to be this happy.”
“All those years of nursing training, and now you are learning on the job. Trust your instincts. They have never let a patient down, and they will not start now.”
“Two sets of books on one shelf and neither of us can remember whose is whose. That happened so slowly that I never saw it happening, and I would not undo a page of it.”
“Some of my favorite moments are just watching you with our kids. The patience, the hugs and the way you always know what they need.”
“This Christmas you might be working while the rest of us open presents. We will save you a plate and a seat, and we will toast the nurse in the family.”
“We shared a wall for years and you heard every bad idea I ever had. You never told anybody about a single one of them, which is why you are standing here.”
“You look after my mother on the days I cannot get there, and there are many. You do it the way I would want it done, which is not anything I could teach you.”
“If you are on shift this Christmas, we will celebrate whenever you get home. The day on the calendar matters less than having you at the table.”
“I do not know where you got all that patience, because it was not from me. Your students are lucky, and so is your old dad, who still needs help with his phone.”
“I am marrying your son, and I have had years now to work out where he got it. The patience, the steadiness and the way he will not let a room stay awkward.”
“Somewhere along the way, you started giving me better advice than I gave you. I do not know when it happened, but I am so proud that it did.”