love works

 

love. 

as a kid...even into early adulthood we think of love as a feeling.  it often involves sex.  it always involves heart flutters.  sometimes it even involves bursting into spontaneous song.

in jr high i got my first boyfriend...and we were so in love. 
in high school i had a dated several guys...and we were so in love.
in college i had a serious relationship...and we were so in love.

i thought i was an expert.

meanwhile...my grandparents...roland and fern harding (pictured above) were true experts...quietly modeling love for me to follow or ignore. 

thankfully...i was watching...(even if i didn't realize it at the time.)

grampa loved grama so much.  he truly cherished her.  now let me tell you...she was a norwegian from the northwest...stubborn as the day is long...but he cherished her. 

grampa and his friends snuck grama onto his military base.  they were married by the chaplain...a soldier was her 'bridesmaid'.  that's how their marriage started.  not with tulle, roses or fondant...their marriage started with work. 

grampa went to war and wrote home...so many letters...and grama dealt with pregnancy, birth and raising their oldest son alone...their family started with work. 

once the war was over...grampa's work led to a lot of travelling.  they celebrated accomplishments together...they dealt with loss together...but they made it work. 

in their old age...they did devotions together every day.  they held hands as they walked thru parking lots.  they shared dessert at restaurants.  they really made love work.

she took care of everyone...and he took care of her.

last year...on valentines day...we had my grampa's funeral...and just a month ago...we buried my grandmother...shortly after what would have been their 71st wedding anniversary. 

shortly before grama joined grampa in heaven...she told my uncle... "i really miss your dad."

they worked...to make love work...
i'm so blessed to have their legacy...