Love Is Action!

I once took my children, Helen (8) and Brandon (5) to the Cloverleaf Mall in Hattiesburg to do a little shopping. As we drove up, we spotted a Peterbilt 18-wheeler parked with a big sign on it that said, “Petting Zoo.” The kids jumped up in a rush and asked, “Daddy, Daddy. Can we go? Please. Please. Can we go?”

“Sure,” I said, flipping them each a quarter before walking into Sears. A petting zoo consists of a portable fence erected in the mall with about six inches of sawdust and a hundred little furry baby animals of all kinds. Kids pay their money and stay guarded in the enclosure, enraptured with the squirmy little critters while their parents shop. They bolted away, and I felt free to take my time looking for a scroll saw.

A few minutes later, I turned around and saw Helen walking along behind me. I was shocked to see she preferred the hardware department to the petting zoo. Recognizing my error, I bent down and asked her what was wrong.

She looked up at me with those giant limpid brown eyes and said sadly, “Well, Daddy, it cost fifty cents. So, I gave Brandon my quarter.” Then she said the most beautiful thing I ever heard. She repeated the family motto. The family motto is in “Love is Action!” She had given Brandon her quarter, and no one loves cuddly furry creatures more than Helen.

She had watched my wife, Sandy once take my steak and say, “Love is Action!” She had watched both of her parents do and say “Love is Action!” for years around the house and church. She had heard and seen “Love is Action” her whole life, and now she had incorporated it into her little lifestyle. It had become part of her.

As soon as I finished my errands, I took Helen to the petting zoo. We stood by the fence and watched Brandon go crazy petting and feeding the animals. Helen stood with her hands and chin resting on the fence and just watched Brandon. I had fifty cents burning a hole in my pocket, but I never offered it to Helen. And she never asked for it.

Reflect and Respond

• What does LOVE mean to you?
• How does your family (biological and/or chosen) show love?
• Do a "Love in Action" good deed today for someone who needs to feel loved.