If You Love Someone ---

     A few years after I got married my wife bought me a small stone paperweight that had written on it “If you love someone --- tell them!”  I have kept that gift for many years and each time I look at it I think a little bit more about that saying.

     When I was growing up my Dad was not a very emotionally expressive man.  He would always make the statement: “I put food on the table.  You have clothes to wear.  You have a roof over your head.  Can’t you tell that I love you?”  He never saw the need to actually express himself by saying the words.

     I guess he was like many men even today.  We don’t often think it is necessary to express our feelings by getting all “mushy” with words.  That’s the kind of thing that the women do!  So we just sit around and play our macho part.

     So I thought when my family began to grow and my wife and I had children I would not be that kind of father.  I often wanted to (and did) put my arms around the kids and tell them that I loved them.  I did the same with my wife.  Even today after 50 years of marriage I enjoy walking with her anywhere holding hands.  I remember on one occasion my son told us that his cousin made a comment to him when he saw us “kiss” in public!  (It was just a quick peck on the check!)  I have always enjoyed expressing my feelings.

     I thought it was necessary to let them know how I felt about them.  So whenever I could I made the expressions of my feelings known to them.  But after I got that gift I began to think a little deeper on the matter.  Is making an expression all that is needed?

     Yes!  They needed to hear me express my feelings, but they needed to SEE those feelings in action.  Too often it is simple to let the words flow over your lips and there is no substance to them.  You can say “I love you”, but how are you able to back up those words.  I started to see that more was required than mere words.

     You have to act in a way that stands behind those words and makes them become a reality.  It might be like telling someone “Hope you get to eat today!”  But you don’t do anything about getting them some food.  Your words may have some meaning of feeling behind them, but the words alone are a bit empty when they are not backed up by actions.

     So I’ve learned that the words need to be supplemented with action.  Once you SHOW someone how you feel any words that you express afterwards have much more power behind them.  Now I feel that my previous gift would have much more import if it read: “If you tell someone you love them --- SHOW them by your actions!”

     In a perfect world we would all probably be better able to do this.  But as we are today it is very difficult to make it happen.  What a truly pitiful excuse when all we can say is: “We’re Only Human!”

QUOTE TO CONSIDER

THOUGHTFUL GEM

"Talk more about others than yourself - - - 

it will keep you humble."