The latest Love Project submission comes from SH. Over the past few weeks Facebook has had an image of Mr. Rogers floating around with the following quote: “Love isn’t a state of perfect caring. It is an active noun like struggle. To love someone is to strive to accept that person exactly the way he or she is, right here and now.”

I find that to be a challenge at times. Both with those I already love dearly (they can be annoying sometimes, right?) and those I don’t know at all (i.e. fellow passenger on a bus who speaks loudly into her cell phone). I’ll be honest, those are the moments I shut down and think of those others as irritating, bad, not like me. But what if those moments were an opportunity to pause and remember that these people are deserving of love? I know they’ve struggled. I know they’ve wanted to be listened to (that might be why she speaks so loudly on that phone). I know they’ve wanted to be hugged when the sh*t hits the fan. Me, too.

This week, what would it take for you to accept someone exactly as they are? Truly? Let me know what you find out.