Two days ago my nephew Noah called the police for me. For me! His aunt. I was shocked. Mind you, he is four years old and the phone he used was literally a handheld one…he was dialing on his hand. He was very polite as he asked the police officer to come to his home right away. He then informed me that I was going to jail. My crime? Telling him I loved him too many times.
He warned me. He did. He said “Say you love me one more time and I will call the police.” So, I called his bluff, looked him in the eye and slowly said, “I love you!” That was it! He immediately dialed his palm and got on to the imaginary air police and was told that one imaginary officer was on their way. But it got me to thinking, how fortunate is he? To know that he is so well and truly loved that he can put limits on the number of times he is told he is loved, or limit the number of hugs he will receive on a daily basis. Secure in the knowledge that at any time, he can call or video chat any member of his family and know that he will see a smiling face, patiently listening while he reads his book about the lion and the mouse for the fifteenth time. Or listen in awe of how he ran so fast down the road. Or how many dinosaurs he saw last night.
I wondered, does he even realize just how loved he is? Is it just one of those things that is taken for granted? Like knowing that you will take in oxygen the next time you inhale? It also got me to thinking, when do we realize that not everyone around us loves us and, why we feel so sad and lonely at this realization. We want to have everyone love us, listen to our stories, marvel at the perfectly ordinary things that we do, and we are saddened when we think or imagine that everyone on this planet is NOT our number one fan.
Ahhhh….but what about the many, many people that do love us? Whether they tell us twenty times a day or they show us how much they care by doing such simple things. Bringing a drink for you because you are wrapped up in a movie on TV and didn’t even realize you would have loved a drink. Covering your shoulder at night with the blanket. Making a simple sandwich. As we grow up, not many of us are told constantly that we are loved, but many of us are loved, by a great many people. We just need to take the time to realize that the glass of water that was given to you when you didn’t even realize you were thirsty was, an act of love.
I pray that Noah always feels that love and always is secure in the knowledge that he is so greatly loved. Bake good and lovely choices all!
xo, Lisa
Baking Good Choices 