A Few Things I Want (And Don't Want)

I don't want any living thing to live in fear of me.

I don't want anyone to feel that there is a truth that cannot be uttered in my presence.

I want never to see another person's honest ambitions as a personal threat.

I want never to claim that I am anyone's conduit to the Word of God.

I want never to judge or be judged by first impression.

I want to share what I've learned, not proselytize what I've always believed. 

I want never to exert power over anyone merely to demonstrate that I can.

I want never to think that people just instinctively know when they are valued or loved or appreciated.

I want, now and then, to say to those I love what I would say to them if they had just died in my arms.