Lessons Learned
Love Is
Perfect
Jack’s father never showed
up to introduce himself. Jack’s mother was killed by a drunk driver when Jack
was four. Jack was an only child. But Jack was not alone because Gramma moved
in with her suitcase full of love and filled their home, their upstairs flat,
with optimism and joy. Although their pile of worldly treasure could have been
contained in a child’s shoebox, their heart-treasure was an ever-overflowing
cup. Strong. Confident. Proud. Family. There is no perfect number for a family.
There is no perfect family. But love is perfect, and my first graders in Jack’s
class informed me of that. A family is a circle of love where your hand is
held, your face will be kissed, where your dreams can safely swirl, and where,
wrapped up in a hug, you can freely spill your tears unjudged upon a Corinthian
thirteen shoulder. The need to be loved, to be heard, to be seen, to belong is
desperately, life-changingly great and demands a free gift of the heart which
is in the full possession of each of us. Nothing fancy. Just something
selfless. Within the circle of a family, between the interlaced fingers, flow
the faithful , endless prayers of each one for each other. The bonds of
love are infinitely strong across the miles, across the years, and provide deep
connection and peace that fully transcend our foibles, imperfections, and
errors. We love. In family reunion, at graduations and weddings, at sporting
events and concerts, at awards ceremonies and celebratory dinners we lay aside
our busy bustling routines and race to be together, to draw close together in a
strong circle to remember the joy, the peace, the strength, the promise, the
uniqueness, the comfort, the hope, the blessing, the perfect love that is
family.
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