Another day had ended and with her favorite fairy tale read…my daughter asked me,
"Mommy, what is love?” as I tucked her into bed.
And so I did what parents do when they’re not sure what to say…I took a deep breath and started talking…hoping I’d find the right words to say.
Hoping great insights would come to me as I scanned the recesses of my brain…
“Love,” I said holding her hand and stalling for time, “love is not so easy to explain.”
Then doing my best to answer in words I hoped she’d understand
I said,“Love isn’t something you see…you can’t hold it in your hands.”
“Yet love can be found everywhere…it floats upon the wind…it glides upon the sea…
It’s in every creature large and small…it’s in you…and it’s in me.”
“Love will only blossom when two loves are intertwined…
Love is beautiful, compassionate, forgiving…love is wonderful and kind.”
“Love grows from somewhere deep inside us…it is the music in our heart…
It’s something that we share when we’re together
and whenever we’re apart.”
“Love transforms throughout the years…from the time we’re young…till the time we’re grown…love is caring for someone else’s happiness more than you care about your own.”
“Love is as wonderful when it is old as it was when it was new…
I believe, when it comes to love…it’s something we are born to do.”
When I thought I’d said enough…when my ramblings were through…I smiled at my daughter and asked, “By the way…what is love to you?”
She thought about it for a moment then her eyes lit up and with a child’s innocence proclaimed, “I think love is what makes me smile every time I say your name.”
What is love? was the question my daughter asked me at the end of a beautiful day…
and the next time someone asks me…
I know exactly what I’m going to say.