love is...

Speaking of love, I was in the previous post, I was remiss in not chronicling the long awaited half a century birthday celebrated last week by my mother - Carol Ann.

Yes, Carol Ann turned 50 last Thursday and while no we didn't do anything wild we did celebrate the day. Wild is perhaps yet to come - Ronnie, for his 21st birthday, got 1000 drinking games, which during Christmas I think as a family we will have to try out!!!

But back to my mum -- for the blog record, because I did already speak the actual words to her, one of the things I appreciate, admire most about my mum is her love - her love for the people in her life.

In preparation for Ronnie's gift to her, a DVD montage of her life to date, I spent time looking over photos of my mum. Photos of her as a baby, as a young child, a teenager, a young woman, and etc :) The photos told the story of her life in snapshot lens - as a daughter, a granddaughter, a niece, a sister, a mother, a wife, a mother anew, a grandmother, a friend - and in each scene what was so clearly evident was the love she had and has for the people she holds dear in her life. When she is cuddled closely in the lap of her father as a child, there is a look of daddy hero love reflected in her eyes. When she is hugging her sister close, again that look of love. There is a shot of her as a young mum with David held close to her cheek, and there etched in her face, her eyes stained with the truth of it - is love. This pure and unadulterated love.

In later years we had trouble finding shots, because my mum was often the one behind the camera, but even then love was reflected. When someone takes a photo of someone they love, they capture the shot in such a way. Even more than that my mum has been what I am going to call a light of love. Short of Christ, my mum has exemplified what love is and what it looks like.

Her love is patient - from her countless hours listening to me prattle on, to her assurance and confidence with her dad now that age is creeping in...

Her love is kind - to even those people who may on a bad day rub the wrong way, she offers a kind and encouraging word.

Her love is not self seeking - she isn't out to get anything return.

Her love keeps no record of wrongs - she isn't about to hold the errors of your way in your face, and hold it against you.

Her love is made that much greater and that much sweeter because it is born from the love of Christ that she embraces and draws from, and when the Love of Christ Jesus is at the center how can that love be anything but the sweetest of all.