v      If I could speak all the languages of earth and of angels, but didn’t love others, I would only be a noisy gong or a clanging cymbal.

v      If I had the gift of prophecy, and if I understood all of God’s secret plans and possessed all knowledge, and if I had such faith that I could move mountains, but didn’t love others, I would be nothing

v      If I gave everything I have to the poor and even sacrificed my body, I could boast about it….but if I didn’t love others, I would have gained nothing.

v      Love is patient and kind

v      Love is not jealous or boastful or proud or rude

v      It does not demand it’s own way

v      It is not irritable, and keeps no record of being wronged.

v      It does not rejoice about injustice…. but rejoices whenever the truth wins out

v      Love never gives up, never loses faith, is always hopeful, and endures through every circumstance

v      Most of us have heard these verses.  The love verses.  Taken from 1^st Corinthians 13:1-7.

v      Yes.  Most of us have heard them.  But few of us have lived them….. lived them…like my dad lived them.

v      He was truly the most patient and kind man I know.  He didn’t waste time chasing after things he didn’t have.  Instead, he cherished the things he did.

v      Though he had plenty he could have boasted about…..he never did.

v      Even when he had every right to be…..he was never rude.

v      Never demanding…….never irritable……

v      He was quick to forgive…..never holding grudges

v      He had strong convictions of right and wrong…he was willing to share them....though he never pushed them on anyone.

v      He hated the pain and suffering of innocent people.  He rejoiced when justice was served.

v      I think that’s why he loved the old westerns…..at least in the westerns, the good guys, the ones wearing the white hats…. always win.

v      And most of all, he never gave up.  Never lost heart.  Never lost hope.  He loved everyone…..passionately……until his very last breath.

v      He didn’t often say the words “I love you”……

v      He had his own way of showing us how much he loved us.

v      He was always quick to help…no matter what the task.

v      Whether it was a broken down car…..a problem with the house…..a driveway to be plowed…a lawn to be mowed…an errand to be run…..he was always ready and willing to help.

v      No job was beneath him……He truly had the heart of a servant……willing to do anything and everything for those he loved…..never asking for anything in return

v      He also loved to tease those who meant the most to him.  Many of us experienced his love in this way.

v      He got such pleasure out of getting a loved one “riled up”.  Even more than that….he loved telling us about getting a loved one “riled up”.

v      I would see my dad at the Y and he would say “I got Dick going real good this morning”.  He would have that sparkle in his eye…..and that mischeivious smile……

v      He was just like a kid…….unable to hide the delite it brought him to get someone he loved all fired up….while he just sat back and enjoyed himself……

v      He loved to tease my mom…….he would tease her until she would say “Just keep it up Charlie…..” In that tone that gently let him know she had had enough.....

v      Then he would look over at me, with a twinkle in his eye, and a smile on his face…He would sit back in his chair and relax….satisfied with his job well done.

v      No one was exempt from this form of love.  He even loved to tease the children who where unable to defend themselves.

v      One of his favorite jokes was one we refer to as “The Tumbleweed”.

v      He used to put a tumbleweed in Terri’s highchair when she was a baby. 

v      She would see it in the morning and have a fit and cry and cry.

v      This was kind of a two-for one prank for my dad……the first being on Terri, the second on my mom, who was left to deal with the tantrum…..as my dad was at work…..not having to deal with it

v      He loved that prank so much that he brought it out of retirement when the first grandson, Croix was born.

v      He teased all of the grandkids.  He teased the girls about their boyfriends……he teased the boys about their lack of girlfriends.

v      He teased Thomas and Charley about their big, stinky dog….that is always causing trouble

v      In fact, he even teased the dog

v      To be teased by my dad, was an honor……for it meant he loved you……

v      Behind all of the jokes and teasing, was a sweet and tender man who loved more people in more ways than I could ever imagine.

v      But there was no one he loved more than my mom.

v      For 55 years, actually for 57 years, he loved my mom.  He loved her from the first minute he met her, to the last minute he said goodbye.

v      He would often tell us girls “I don’t know what it is about your mother…..but she just keeps getting better looking year after year.”

v      While we were at the hospital, in those final hours, my dad was unable to speak.  He was however able to open his eyes from time to time.  He was able to squeeze and hold on to our hand.  He was even able to nod a couple of times.

v      As I was holding his hand I said “Mom, dad told us girls over and over again how beautiful you are.  He said you get better looking every day……Isn’t that right dad?”   He nodded yes.

v      And in the final hours, when he could no longer open his eyes.  He would reach for my moms hand…..never letting it go for more than a few seconds…..

v      Love never gives up…..never loses faith……is always hopeful…..and endures through every circumstance……….

v      I believe that includes death……as we all have so many memories of how he loved us…..

v      May we take the lessons we learned from my dad…these lessons of love…..and continue to love others….as he loved us