Several years ago my family helped my brother move into our dad’s aunt’s home. Her husband, our dad’s uncle, had recently passed away, and my brother moved in to help take care of the farm, which had been the family homestead for generations. He now lives in the part of the farmhouse that for many years had been a mother-in-law suite and eventually was filled with our great aunt and uncle’s things—musical instruments, artwork, crafts, and all sorts of knickknacks that mirrored their creativity and offbeat sense of humor.

As we made room for my brother’s stuff by moving things into the main part of the house, I came across a small placard tacked to the wall near the old telephone. It stopped me in my tracks, and I stood there reading it over and over again, trying to memorize the message. Before we left, I found an old receipt in my purse and wrote down these words:

On This Day

Mend a quarrel. Search out a forgotten friend. Dismiss suspicion, and replace it with trust. Write a love letter. Share some treasure. Give a soft answer. Encourage youth. Manifest your loyalty in a word or deed.

Keep a promise. Find the time. Forgo a grudge. Forgive an enemy. Listen. Apologize if you were wrong. Try to understand. Flout envy. Examine your demands on others. Think first of someone else. Appreciate friends and family. Be kind. Be gentle. Laugh a little more. Deserve confidence. Take up arms against malice. Decry complacency. Express your gratitude. Worship your God. Gladden the heart of a child.

Take pleasure in the beauty and wonder of the earth.

Speak your love.

Speak it again.

Speak it still again.

Speak it still again.

I hope to follow many of the instructions listed above, but it strikes me that the most difficult and important is the last, which is why I have added it to my life list.

A hollyhock outside the farmhouse. One of our family’s favorite flowers.