WORTH THE COST?

 I am certain I have posted about this before, but recently I was reminded of the relevance and importance of it.  There is that old saying, 

"LOVE MAKES THE WORLD GO ROUND"

I did a little research (of course I did) and it appears no one knows the origin of this saying,

but  I did find this-

"It's been expressed in various forms in literature and philosophy, suggesting love is essential for happiness"

We could talk circles around this, but one truth for MOST of us is we desire to love and be loved.  It is such a strong emotion, we are actually able (MOST OF US) to look beyond ourselves when we love someone and put their needs before our own.  Is it also true with great love---can come great cost? 

My Dear Friend recently recently reminded me of just how true this can be.  They called in great distress by the anniversary of the loss of a sweet Loved One.  Those anniversaries bring it all to the surface.  We are able at some point to stuff down the great grief caused by the loss of those we love deeply, but it is always there just below the surface waiting for something to bring it all to the surface.  They have faced a loss the vast majority of us will not have to bear, but that particular day--they was reliving it all as they were reminded by the calendar. 

In a quick moment, the conversation took a turn---as they sobbed, they remembered another Dear Friend who is facing medical tests with possible dire answers.  They looked beyond their personal grief and asked for prayers for another.  They were living beyond their personal pain---and actively thinking of another.  There lies the key to living with the cost of losing great love---looking beyond ourselves and thinking of those in our midst who are also suffering or in need.  

We all desire to love and be loved---but it comes with a cost.  Is it worth the cost when we suffer from seemingly unbearable grief?  ABSOLUTELY! Would we want our life to be void of the loved one so we would not have to bear the weight of great grief?  Yes, we could avoid the great pain of loss, but we would also void ourselves of the great joy of love.  We are, in a sense, dying to self when we open ourselves to the possibility of great pain by loving another so much we risk suffering great pain.

This all made me think of Jesus and how He loved us so much---KNOWING the pain He would suffer He walked the road to the cross.  As Easter approaches, during this period of Lent, I am reflecting on His willingness ---because of His great love for us---to suffer the unthinkable agony of becoming our sacrifice for the sins of the world.  He KNEW the separation from the Father He was about to endure--the loss of communion with Him until He was resurrected.  So was it worth the cost?  He knew by His sacrifice we would be with Him throughout eternity.  YES---there is pain---and loss---but Sunday was coming!

"This is real love -

not that we loved god,

but that He loved us

and sent His Son

as a sacrifice 

to take away our sins."

I John 4:10

UNENCUMBERED

 I have missed you, Dear Friends and our conversations.  How can it already be March and I have not posted?  How can the weeks have flown by with so little work on my Memory Book for my offspring?  Life has a way of drifting off course and when we take our eyes off the road, we may find ourselves headed NOT where we intended.

  So it has been since 2024.  I could blame the latest of my series of moves over the past decade plus on the burden of owning two houses at once (long story, but truly I was real estate poor).  As with all things--were all those moves really necessary?  I have become somewhat of a nomad---looking for a house that can become a home---even when knowing the building is not what makes a home.  Currently I am actually in a repeat house---interesting story--or perhaps not.  Maybe it is like a record you really like and decide to listen to more than once or a good book that you re-read--pleasure and wisdom can be garnered from repeats.  This house---is a lovely house---warm and comfortable and less than 15 years old, so no old house problems.  The yard is a great size for me to be able to handle and the downstairs is just enough space for me.  The down-side of this house is all the space upstairs I do not need.  I literally only go up the stairs to clean (my obsessive need for tidiness and cleanliness).  In the world of my economy, more than what I need or want to take care of can be a burden.

Thankfully I am always considering life's happenings and trying to glimmer an ounce of wisdom to use as I finish out these last chapters.  With all these moves and a couple of them long distance, I have garnered this bit of wisdom---downsizing -though NOT easy to accomplish---frees us from taking care of the un-needed things in our lives we have managed to collect over a lifetime of walking through this world.  I am down to a bare minimum---and it is more than enough.  All those material possessions require time, effort, and resources to take care of and provide space for.  My release of material possessions began with selling the home where I raised my children for the most part--5 acres and 2800 square feet of living space along with storage space galore in an attic, garage, and storage house---crammed absolutely full.  It was a herculean task.  With each move, I have whittled down the possessions collected over decades.  These last two moves were absolutely paring down to only what I frequently use and need.  Even the bequests in my will of family keepsakes have been handed over to their new owners.  My memories are now in my head and heart--and I am traveling the reminder of the road to Heaven unencumbered, for the most part,  with material possessions.

As I thought this over during this move, it occurred to me the freedom of not having the responsibility of caring for things which probably do not have any worth to those I will leave them.  Having helped with my in-law's house which was decades upon decades of "things" and dismantling my mother's apartment just before she went on---I am well aware--what happens to the lion's share of the treasures of this world.  Either someone is fighting over them (I absolutely refuse to fight---peace is always more important) or they are dragging them to the landfill and dumping them out to be-literally plowed under.  One man's treasure is another man's junk.  Sooner or later we will be unencumbered---there is only so much room in a casket--and we cannot take it with us.

We will all enter our eternal home--our home which will be permanent--unencumbered.  I am pretty certain we all agree we cannot take our earthly possessions with us---my question is can we also free ourselves while here on this earth of the emotional baggage of a lifetime?  Will we stand at those gates of our eternal home---free of the negative emotions gathered as we walked through this life?   What are we hanging on to and refusing to part with that we will have to explain when we knock on that door?  Food for thought, Friends, food for thought.

"But they were looking forward to a better home in heaven."

Hebrews 11:16