WHEN YOU THOUGHT I WASN'T WATCHING
His assignment was a simple one…to go home…observe his family
and then write an essay his teacher entitled, ‘What Love Means To Me’
He did just that…for days he watched his mom…he secretly took notes
and after a little bit of observation…this is what he wrote:
WHAT LOVE MEANS TO ME
Love is my mom making sure I have all my meals…that I am happy and well fed.
It’s how she makes sure I take a bath, clean behind my ears and brush my teeth before I go to bed.
It’s how she happily gets behind the wheel when it’s her turn to car-pool
or how she greets me with a hug and a kiss when I get home from school.
I saw so many big things my mom does when I was watching…big things of love just for me
but I also saw love in little things she does when she thinks I do not see.
It’s when making me a peanut butter and jelly sandwich she takes the time to spread
the peanut butter…just the way I like it…on both slices of the bread.
It’s the notes she slips into my lunchbox…how she finds a way
with a smiley face or a little heart…to brighten up my day.
It’s when she reads me a book in bed at night…once I’ve prayed my soul the lord to keep
how she always reads to the end of the book even when she thinks I am asleep.
It’s when, after she tucks me into bed and has turned out all the lights,
she checks back in later…to make sure that I’m all right.
It seems to me love has two parts…before this…I didn’t know…
each part is equally important…each part make love grow.
The first part has to do with those big things we do for others…
like the big things my mom does for me.
Those big things when I’m watching…that are easy for me to see.
The second part are all those little things we do for each other…
Like all the little things my mom does for me
when she thinks I am not watching…when she thinks I do not see.
So to me love means making another person happier than they had ever thought…
Like all the big things my mom does for me when she knows that I am watching…
and all the little things she does for me when she thinks that I am not
His mom has saved his essay all these years…and sometimes on a whim
She pulls it out to remind herself what her love meant to him.
Copyright © Jim Yerman | Year Posted 2024
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