All You Need is Love

E. B. White
celebrated life through
a mouse’s journey,
the pact between an pig and a spider,
and the power of words.
He basked in the seasons,
the peace of the barn,
the beauty of the world.
His stories capture the glory of nature
and the comfort of hope.
           from: A Boy, a Mouse, and a Spider: The Story of E. B. White
                                                  written by Barbara Herkert
                                                   illustrated by Lauren Castillo
                   Christy Ottaviano Books/Henry Holt and Company, 2017
 
       E. B. White taught children (and the adults who read to them) about love in his stories about Ralph S. Mouse, loving friendships in Charlotte’s Web and the unending love of parents for their children in The Trumpet of the Swan.
       Tomorrow is Valentine’s Day. Back in the days when my husband and I exchanged gifts, it meant chocolate and flowers. Since chocolate goes right to my hips and his belly, and the cats eat flowers, we tend to express our affection in more subtle ways.
       Many of the small (and large) chores (that have become habits over the years) go without thanks from me. So here’s a valentine Thank You for someone who does much.

• Washing my car (even when I don’t think it *really* needs it)
• Doing laundry (even when bright colors go in hot water and sometimes the dryer)
• Making sure the driveway and sidewalks are clear even on the snowiest and coldest days
• Organizing the income taxes
• Sticking on the new license plate stickers
• Digging out thistles in the garden (especially the really big, thorny ones)
• Digging holes for new perennials (that didn’t look *that* big in the garden store)
• Gently waking me up (after the movie) and suggesting the bed is more comfortable than the couch

and for the kind looks and the kind words and the kind thoughts (I hear them in my mind’s ear.)
       After more than thirty years (33 last December) of marriage, I’m finally learning that the really important part of life is taking care of each other, with a softer, gentle love: sharing a smile, remembering a quiet, happy memory, playing with our grandchildren.
                                                                    -stay curious!