A baby is born with a need to be loved - and
never outgrows it.
~Frank A. Clark~
I think about
love all the time. I used to wonder if
it was real and why it seemed that I was the only one in the entire world who
didn’t give or receive it. Then I grew
up – and became a Mom.
The first time that I knew for sure that love was real was when I became a Mom. As soon as the nurse put my brand new baby boy in my arms and I looked at him, my heart melted. It was definitely love at first sight and it’s only grown stronger through the years. It also taught me that I can love – just because it doesn’t feel like I think it should – or THOUGHT it should – it’s still love. Having a second son two years later taught me that there's no limit on the amount of love a person can give.
I met a lady many years ago who made one random comment that changed my opinion about love forever. I’m sure she’s long dead by now but I’ve never forgotten her or what she taught me. I don’t know what we know or learn after we die, but I hope she knows what a difference she made to me. She taught me that love DOES exist.
This lady and her husband were elderly and lived in a small, modest home. It wasn’t the tidiest place I’ve ever been in but I wouldn’t call it “dirty”. I remember the husband coming in, tracking dirt from his boots all over the floor. He sat at the small kitchen table where he proceeded to make a mess of some kind on the floor (sorry I don’t remember what he did). Then he went back outside. The wife commented that her work was never done and added these words that I’ll never forget: “Oh well, it makes him happy so I don’t mind”. She picked up the broom and began sweeping up his mess.
All I could think was “that’s love”. It didn’t matter that it was something as insignificant as tracking in dirt. It was the idea that she never told him and, I suspect, it never occurred to him. No matter how she felt, his happiness was most important to her. I wondered if he knew how much he was loved and if he loved her as much. What did he do for her that she never knew about?
I learned that day that love – real and true love – is unselfish. I’m not talking about the romantic kind of love that men and women have for each other. No, it’s all love (including the romantic kind) – parents and children, brothers and sisters, cousins and best friends – anyone.
How lucky I am that I learned that lesson so early in life.
The first time that I knew for sure that love was real was when I became a Mom. As soon as the nurse put my brand new baby boy in my arms and I looked at him, my heart melted. It was definitely love at first sight and it’s only grown stronger through the years. It also taught me that I can love – just because it doesn’t feel like I think it should – or THOUGHT it should – it’s still love. Having a second son two years later taught me that there's no limit on the amount of love a person can give.
I met a lady many years ago who made one random comment that changed my opinion about love forever. I’m sure she’s long dead by now but I’ve never forgotten her or what she taught me. I don’t know what we know or learn after we die, but I hope she knows what a difference she made to me. She taught me that love DOES exist.
This lady and her husband were elderly and lived in a small, modest home. It wasn’t the tidiest place I’ve ever been in but I wouldn’t call it “dirty”. I remember the husband coming in, tracking dirt from his boots all over the floor. He sat at the small kitchen table where he proceeded to make a mess of some kind on the floor (sorry I don’t remember what he did). Then he went back outside. The wife commented that her work was never done and added these words that I’ll never forget: “Oh well, it makes him happy so I don’t mind”. She picked up the broom and began sweeping up his mess.
All I could think was “that’s love”. It didn’t matter that it was something as insignificant as tracking in dirt. It was the idea that she never told him and, I suspect, it never occurred to him. No matter how she felt, his happiness was most important to her. I wondered if he knew how much he was loved and if he loved her as much. What did he do for her that she never knew about?
I learned that day that love – real and true love – is unselfish. I’m not talking about the romantic kind of love that men and women have for each other. No, it’s all love (including the romantic kind) – parents and children, brothers and sisters, cousins and best friends – anyone.
How lucky I am that I learned that lesson so early in life.
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