I know you.

You are me 20 years ago, and you are me today. The only difference between us is that I am doing all of the things you thought you could never do.

I do know you love me.

But I want you -- I am begging you -- to love me for the person I am.

Love me for my big spirit - a spirit that is too extravagant for that small town we are from. Love me for dreaming big. You have dreams too… yours are mine, but mine are not yours. Love me for wanting more than they told me I could have. Love me for everything I have sacrificed, and for how hard I've worked.

Love me. Love me for my plans for the future, for I have bright ones. Love me for making those plans happen. Love me for who I was, who I am, and who I will become. My adventures change me a little each time, they challenge me and grow me and make me better. Love me for being capable of change. Love me for wanting to make the world a better place, love me for at least trying to make the world a better place. Love me for my imagination, for it allows me to tell the most colorful stories. Love me for the way I get lost in a world of words... those books. When I am saddened to say goodbye to the characters I have come to love, love me then, too.

Love me for traveling. Love me for not stopping simply because I have been told by the many "yous" to stay put, get a big girl job, get married, have kids. Love me for being fearless enough to grab my backpack and take a trip at any given moment - because not only am I a dreamer, but I am an explorer. Love me for not resting until I have seen every nook and cranny in this world.

Love me for dreaming about romance, about a boy who will travel the world with me, and about a man that thinks I deserved to be kissed every minute of every day. A girl can dream, right? Love me for the way I love others, for wanting to take care of everyone I meet. Love me for wanting to take care of you, and love me for not knowing how. Love me for not being dictated by money. Love me for being independent, for working hard, for not giving up.

Don’t you know it’s you who taught me these things? To be strong, fearless, to never give up? Love me for my passions. Love me for learning to play the piano just to fall in love with the guitar. Love me for wanting to learn more, love me for being my own soul. Love me for my faith. Love me for being sure of the things I hope for and certain of the things I cannot see. Love me for my ability to love and to understand love. Love me for the things I may not love about myself. Love me. Not the me who you want me to be, or the you who you see in me. Just love me. Because I will always love you.