Light up the Sky

A few weeks ago, my daughter Bethy and I sat next to each other at my niece Maureen’s wedding shower. Each table setting had a card for guests to provide advice for the bride and groom:

Always ________________________.

Never _________________________.

My sister Maureen ( we repeat names) turned to us and said, “I’m having trouble with the ‘never’ line.”

At the same time, Bethy and I showed our cards and said, “Scorekeep.”

“Ah,” Maureen said.

“Ah,” I thought. Bethy and I are on the same wavelength. Scorekeeping leads to misery.

When our five kids were young and would argue over who got what, I’d say, “If you keep score, everybody loses.” You can’t measure wholehearted giving. It’s like trying to calculate beauty.

“And still, after all this time, the sun never says to the Earth, ‘You owe Me.’ Look what happens with a love like that, It lights up the whole sky.” - Hafiz