Exuberant Love

THINK

"It is Christmas every time you let God love others through you."

-Mother Teresa of Calcutta

PRAY

 Dear Jesus, Thank you for the people you have called to love me. Thank you for their kindnesses, their time, their compassion. Thank you for the hospitality offered to me, for the comfort of friendship, for support in stressed moments. Bless those people, Lord. Bless them abundantly.

ACT

Write thank you notes today. Actually mail them.

~*~*~*~

As I mentioned yesterday, these quotes have been queued up for a month. Kristin and I have shared the graphic-making. She took the last part of December and sent me an email with a whole bunch of them. I didn't look until I needed them. December 29th is Kristin's second anniversary. Of course, she'd choose a wedding picture for the graphic! I think this one is a Ginny capture. When Kristin creates the graphics, she chooses the quote to go on the image. sometimes, it's the famous quote. Sometimes it's the prayer. Sometimes, it's something I wrote in the action.

This quote, with this picture?

Did. Me. In.

That is Shawn in the background. Shawn, Master of Ceremonies over the wedding festivities. Shawn, who blessed the first meal Michael and Kristin shared together as a new family, on the Feast of the Holy Family. Shawn, whom we all thought would be a part of their future together. Instead, when the happy couple had their first baby a little over year after this picture was taken, they named her Lucy Shawn, after the the best friend gone too soon.

Shawn was larger than life when he was alive and we are very much aware that we now have an advocate for exuberant joy in heaven. Still, there is Shawn, in the background of the glorious moments (and the tough ones, too). Shawn taught us all a lot about love during his brief and very fierce illness. I cannot look at this image without weeping. I'm still sad. I'm also very grateful. If only we could all learn to let God love others through us the way that he did... If only.