Saturday, February 14, 2015

LOVE

I honored a request that was made very early today. It required a little effort, but tapped into skills I enjoy utilizing. It was a simple request. All of the ingredients and resources were available so that I could not only honor the request, but add to it. I was happy to oblige. I didn't even think about whether I felt like doing it or not. I was merely happy--no--delighted to be asked. 
It's nice when people have confidence in you.
There's something about the way a person makes a request that motivates you to honor it. It's not about blowing smoke, or being manipulative. Politeness, respect, and consideration go a long way. Sure. You could say, "No". That's always an option. Making another person happy, even about the littlest of things, is like giving yourself a shot in the arm; a gift. Doing something nice for someone else does make you feel better (and it doesn't always have to be someone you know).

Sometimes, the manner in which someone asks something of you reminds you of another time, long ago. Perhaps the people who ask you to do things for them are quite capable of doing it themselves, but your particular spin on it is appreciated or favored.

Matthew Henry was right. "Charity is an utter enemy to selfishness".

I imagine that there are people, in the lives of us all, for whom we would go out of our way to help or please; people for whom we'd abandon our own leisure, comfort, or agendas; people who extract the distance and inconvenience out of the extra mile. Knowing that even one person has your back, is beyond encouraging. There are people whose smiles and gratitude motivate us; people for whom we would drop everything--no questions asked; people to whose sides we would run if we were able; people who don't aim to use or abuse us, but know in their hearts they can depend on us.
Perhaps these are the people who love us, and are the people we love in return.

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