When I want to define what love really is, what exactly can I use? I’ve had a very interesting childhood which brings me to share with you all an incident that happened to me when I was ten.
It was in Sunday school. And the topic was Love. So the teacher asked us to define what we felt love was. I knew this topic was leading to God’s love for us, so I rose my hand and replied “Love is that will you have to go out of your way for someone. Love means sacrifice.” I will never forget the glare the teacher gave me as she ordered me to sit down stating that I was ’ going too deep’ but I wondered to myself.
Does that mean I was wrong?
But no, there’s no way to express love than that. Love is not a feeling. Love is a doing. Love is not by words of mouth but by action. Love has nothing to do with the mere words of I love you but more to do with expressing that love. Maybe through acts of service, quality time, gifts or maybe all of them. Love isn’t saying “sorry” when I say I don’t have a dress to wear, love is “I don’t have money to get a dress for you, but I have this beautiful dress and I know it would look beautiful on you.”
This brings me to talk about a friend of mine. Her name is Glory. September 16th is our ‘Friendversary’ and this year would make it nine years of solid friendship. Glory is a very special person I hold in my heart. She is a very meek, soft-spoken girl, introverted and reserved. At least that’s how she was, I may have influenced her on the soft-spoken part because soft-spoken is one thing I’m not.....lol. And she's becoming more like me. 😂 But generally, she is all of that. It began in our first year in secondary school when I walked into the restroom and heard shouts. I saw a slim, dark-skinned girl bowing her head while a couple of girls were saying things to her. Funny thing was that these girls were our mates, so why would they be yelling at her like she was a little girl? As the ’ busybody’ that I am, I walked up to them, all short and scrawny and screamed that they should not talk to her like that. ” Do you know who I am? The principal is my aunt.” That last part was something I didn’t like to say but desperate times call for desperate measures and I was such a tiny girl, I knew I had to say something to make up for my size. The girls looked at me pointedly but walked away. I turned to the dark girl and her eyes were filled with undiluted awe and appreciation, I knew we would become friends from that moment.
And that was how it all began. Over the years, our friendship has grown tremendously, she has been my rock, my pillar, and my sister. When I say Glory is the most selfless person I know, I mean it with all my heart. I remember just recently when I concealed the fact that I was no longer seeing clearly, and I didn’t have the money that was needed to pay for my glasses. I resisted telling her cause I knew she was going through a lot financially but wouldn’t hesitate to give me the money. But one look at me squinting at my notebook in Church, and by the time I got home, I received a credit alert from her with enough money to get my glasses. To be honest, I wasn’t happy. And I told her so, but in her usual way just laughed and said “my friend if you don’t take that money. Do you want a situation where you would just pass me on the road 'cause you can’t see me?”
She has taught me the value of love. She has shown me that love is nothing without sacrifice, without inconvenience, without patience, without forgiveness.
Love is everything people are not talking about enough in the world. Love is an action. Love is a doing.
Let’s LOVE today!
Thanks for reading.❤️