A Swing and a Hug

It was a warm, sunny, Saturday afternoon some fifteen or sixteen years ago. I had volunteered to take my two older kids to the local playground while my wife put the youngest down for a nap. As soon as we got there my daughter headed for the swings and asked for a push. As I was helping my daughter to go higher and higher, I noticed another little girl 3 swings down trying in vain to get her own swing going. Her elderly grandmother was sitting quietly on a nearby bench and smiled at me. I gave my daughter one last big push and then walked over to the little girl and asked if she could use a push too. She smiled and said "Yes!" I soon had her feet soaring towards the clouds while she laughed happily. For the next two hours I found myself pushing swings and playing tag with my son, daughter, and the other little girl. By the time we headed home I was physically exhausted but my spirit was still flying higher than those swings.

Two years later I was exhausted again after a long day’s work. Still, I needed to pick up my kids from the local grade school before heading home. I stood wearily in the parents’ waiting area watching for my children. Suddenly, I felt two tiny arms wrap around my stomach. I looked down and there was the little girl from the playground smiling up at me. She gave me one more big hug before heading off to catch her bus. As I watched her go I didn’t feel quite so tired anymore and my spirit was once again soaring in the Heavens.

In this life every single bit of love we share finds its way back to us again. It may travel from heart to heart or it may blossom in the soul where it was planted. It may take seconds or it may take years. God’s law of love, though, is never broken. What we give, we get back. What we sow, we reap. The love we share, the kindness we give, and the joy we create will always come back to bless us in this life and even more so in the next.

~ Joseph J. Mazzella ~

You can get Joseph Mazzella's book, "WALKING THE PATH OF LOVE," at www.amazon.com

[ by: Joseph J. Mazzella Copyright © 2011 (joecool@wirefire.com) -- {used with permission} ]