What Is Love?

A friend forwarded me this e-mail recently. I’ve seen a few of these before, but they are worth reading.

Today I talked to a friend who recently underwent surgery for colon cancer, and she told me that her husband is doing a great job taking care of her…in fact, she said that sometimes he’s taking care of her TOO well. When your loved one has cancer, I don’t think it’s possible to do too much to express your love and concern.

What does love mean? A group of professional people posed this question to a group of 4 to 8 year-olds, "What does love mean?" The answers they got were broader and deeper than anyone could have imagined. See what you think:

"When my grandmother got arthritis, she couldn't bend over and paint her toenails anymore. So my grandfather does it for her all the time, even when his hands got arthritis too. That's love." Rebecca, age 8

"When someone loves you, the way they say your name is different. You just know that your name is safe in their mouth." Billy, age 4

"Love is when you go out to eat and give somebody most of your French fries without making them give you any of theirs." Chrissy, age 6

"Love is what makes you smile when you're tired." –Terri, age 4

"Love is when my mommy makes coffee for my daddy and she takes a sip before giving it to him, to make sure the taste is OK." –Danny, age 7

"Love is when you kiss all the time. Then when you get tired of kissing, you still want to be together and you talk more. My Mommy and Daddy are like that. They look gross when they kiss." Emily, age 8

"Love is what's in the room with you at Christmas if you stop opening presents and listen." Bobby, age 7 (Wow!)

"If you want to learn to love better, you should start with a friend who you hate." Nikka, age 6 (we need a few million more Nikkas on this planet)

"Love is when Mommy sees Daddy smelly and sweaty and still says he is handsomer than Robert Redford." Chris, age 7

"Love is when your puppy licks your face even after you left him alone all day." Mary Ann, age 4

"Love is when Mommy sees Daddy on the toilet and she doesn't think it's gross." Mark, age 6

"You really shouldn't say 'I love you' unless you mean it. But if you mean it, you should say it a lot. People forget." Jessica, age 8

And the final one--Author and lecturer Leo Buscaglia once talked about a contest he was asked to judge. The purpose of the contest was to find the most caring child. The winner was a 4-year-old child whose next door neighbor was an elderly gentleman who had recently lost his wife. Upon seeing the man cry, the little boy went into the old gentleman's yard, climbed onto his lap, and just sat there. When his mother asked what he had said to the neighbor, the little boy said, "Nothing, I just helped him cry."

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