Unconditional Love
While it is still a bit more than a week away, I wanted to write a few words about Father’s Day. I am lucky to be a father of three – Paul, Ben, and Hannah, ages 27, 25, and 21. While Evelyn and I have had a wonderful 30 years of marriage, I can’t imagine my life without the “kids.”
As we were preparing for our first child, we were focused on all the things you are told to do – preparing the room, the clothes, car seats, even 529 college savings accounts. But no one prepared me for the deeply spiritual experience of holding your child for the first time. And the second and third times were no less earth-shattering, even though I was more prepared. There is no way to avoid the intense feeling of God’s presence in the delivery room.
I lost my father about 18 months ago. I was blessed to have him in my life to age 97, and he was quite sharp right to the end. A few days before he passed, I asked him to tell me some stories of profound moments in his life, and he said that only one really mattered – the first time he held me. He said that was the first time he really understood what unconditional love is.
We are called upon to “love our neighbors as ourselves.” Possibly an even higher standard is to love everyone like our children.
Happy early Father’s Day!
Tom Snow
Vestry