Always remember that you have been called worse things by better people.

— Shannon L. Alder

Always trust your gut instinct. There will come a time when you will understand, but for now trust God has a plan greater than you have ever imagined.

— Shannon L. Alder

A man of worth is a man that sees the worth in others more than himself.

— Shannon L. Alder

A man worth being with is one… That never lies to Louis kind to people that have hurt him person that respects another’s life That has manners and shows people respect That goes out of his way to help people That feels every person, no matter how difficult, deserves compassion Who believes you are the most beautiful person he has ever met Who brags about your accomplishments with pride Who talks to you about anything and everything because no bad news will make him love you less That is a peacemaker That will see you through illness Who keeps his promises Who doesn’t blame others, but finds the good in them That raises you up and motivates you to reach for the stars That doesn’t need fame, money or anything materialistic to be happy That is gentle and patient with children Who won’t let you lie to yourself; he tells you what you need to hear, in order to help you grow Who lives what he says he believes in Who doesn’t hold a grudge or hold onto the past Who doesn’t ask his family members to deliberately hurt people that have hurt him Who will run with your dreams That makes you laugh at the world and yourself Who forgives and is quick to apologize Who doesn’t betray you by having inappropriate conversations with other women Who doesn’t react when he is angry, decides when he is sad or keep promises he doesn’t plan to keep Who takes his children’s spiritual life very seriously and teaches by example Who never seeks revenge or would ever put another person down Who communicates to solve problems Who doesn’t play games or passive aggressively ignores people to hurt them Who is real and doesn’t pretend to be something he is not Who has the power to free you from yourself through his positive outlook Who has a deep respect for women and treats them like a daughter of God Who doesn’t have an ego or believes he is better than anyone Who is labeled constantly by people as the nicest person they have ever met Who works hard to provide for the family Who doesn’t feel the need to drink alcohol to have a good time, smoke or do drugs Who doesn't have to hang out a bar with his friends, but would rather spend his time with his family Who is morally free from sin Who sees your potential to be great Who doesn't think a woman's place has to be in the home; he supports your life mission, where ever that takes you Who is a gentleman Who is honest and lives with integrity Who never discusses your private business with anyone Who will protect his family Who forgives, forgets, repairs and restores When you find a man that possesses these traits then all the little things you don’t have in common don’t matter. This is the type of man worth being grateful for.

— Shannon L. Alder

A man worth loving is a man that never makes you feel like an option.

— Shannon L. Alder

Ambition is putting a ladder against the sky.

— Shannon L. Alder

And I was your moon because I shined brighter than any other star in your universe, and you were my darkness. Without you, I could not see the depth of my light and with you, I could set the night a glow. So we needed one another—the dark and the light. Your fear. My courage. Connected, but separated. Different, but the same. A synergy that made no sense, but every bit of sense. We were neither a beginning nor an end. We were somewhere in between our madness at sunset and the reality we awakened to with each sunrise. Furthermore, we were the ghosts of timing and fate. Furthermore, we were neither fantasy nor reality--- we were a purpose somewhere in between.

— Shannon L. Alder

And when one song stops playing write the one that will save your life.

— Shannon L. Alder

And when they dusted my mind for your fingerprints they found yours.

— Shannon L. Alder

An encounter with God demands a response. An encounter with Satan demands your God's response.

— Shannon L. Alder