Playing in the Dirt and Learning to Love

Feeling a little weary this morning, a little frayed, a little worn. It sounds so simple, so easy: life is about loving and being loved. But the reality is so much more messy than that little phrase leads us to believe. 

Loving leaves us vulnerable. One cannot truly love from behind fortress walls. The walls need to come down and one needs to realize that their little world behind those walls was not reality. Reality is much brighter and more colorful, but more dangerous. Danger brings with it adventure, but also the possibility of pain. That is why the walls were erected in the first place: to keep danger out. But what is life without adventure? What is life without love?  

"The best people possess a feeling for beauty, the courage to take risks, the discipline to tell the truth, the capacity for sacrifice. Ironically, their virtues make them vulnerable; they are often wounded, sometimes destroyed." Ernest Hemingway 

I  found this quote this morning. It was posted by a dear sister who is just a few steps ahead of me in this journey of life. I deeply value her wisdom and her vulnerability. The quote spoke just to what I was feeling and assured me that I am not alone on this journey. 

Another quote of encouragement came from Jesus Calling, a devotional written by Sarah Young. It is written as if Jesus is talking directly to you. November 10th begins with, 

"Focus your entire being on My living Presence. I am most assuredly with you, enveloping you in My Love and Peace.While you relax in My Presence, I am molding your mind and cleansing your heart. I am recreating you into the one I designed you to be." 

This is my desire, to let down my walls and learn how to love and be fully loved, first by the one who created me and created love. Then I can move on to loving others and being loved by others. 


Will I ever really know what love is? Probably not until I reach the other side of eternity, but I guess I cannot wait behind my walls until that day. What kind of life would that be? I guess I need to embrace the messiness, and remember how much fun it was to play in the dirt as a kid. Maybe that is why the Lord told us to come like little children, because children still know how to be messy and they are not put off by the messiness of love. 


I guess it is time I unlearn some things, let down my hair, and play in the dirt with Jesus. 

These two precious girls have both taught me so much about love. Brittany (Chorti Auntie) and Rajina: Asha Sisters