“Love intentionally, extravagantly, unconditionally. The broken world waits in darkness for the light that is you“.– L.R. Knost

I have just returned from three weeks of visiting my far-flung family. My brief time with them reinforces my belief that we need to show love improvidently, freely, and fervently while we have the opportunity.
With family, those we love the most, for some reason, it’s easy to get bogged down in the petty emotions. Don’t.
Don’t be offended by an imagined (or even a real) slight. Don’t be meek, afraid to love too much or too openly. Don’t be an ascetic, hoarding your love for some imagined time in the future when love will be more convenient.
Give those you love all of your love today. Do it now.
Then do it all over again tomorrow too.
“A new command I give you: Love one another. As I have loved you, so you must love one another.” – John 13:34
I am linking with Cee’s Flower of the Day, Welcome Heart for Let’s Have Coffee, Debbie at Dare 2 Hear, Amy at Live Life Well, Raisie Bay for Word of the Week, Susan B Mead for Dancing With Jesus, Embracing the Unexpected for Grace and Truth, Random-osity for Little Things Thursdays, Reflections From Me for A Blogging Good Time, Knit by God’s Hand for Thankful Thursdays, Morgan’s Milieu for Post, Comment, Love, and Counting My Blessings for Faith ‘n Friends.
Please click on the following link to read more funny or inspirational one-liners. One-Liner Wednesday.
We can see your love in those photos. Beautiful!
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Thank you, Anne. All photos of people I love!
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Amen, Laurie! Love well and love often. Who knows when we will get a second chance? Blessings!
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Only God knows! Blessings to you, Martha!
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I am definitely family oriented!
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Me too!
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May it never be said that we loved only with our lips but that our hands and feet spoke the language of love more voluminously than choirs of angels.
Blessings,
Homer Les
http://www.uncompromisingfaith.ca
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I just read this verse this morning: “Little children, let us love, not in word or speech, but in truth and action.”- 1 John 3:18. Blessings to you!
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Amen! You think Jesus might be trying to send us a message. 😉
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Maybe He is! 🙂
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Good advice and good reminder!
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Thank you! I need reminders sometimes too!
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What a beautiful time with family. And a great reminder to not be thrown off by a minor slight that may (or may not) be real.
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We did have such a wonderful time with family! Thank you, Rebecca.
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Looks like a wonderful time with your family- so lucky
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We did have such a lovely time with our family!
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Beautiful little post on loving other! Many Thanks 8)
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Thank you! I need the reminder sometimes!
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That Oregon sunflower is amazing! What a blessing that you were able to visit your family all across the states. You’re right that we need to be intentional and extravagant every chance we get with our loved ones! Thanks for sharing about your journeys. I’m sure all were blessed by the time together.
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The time with our family was such a blessing! I only get to see these 2 sons and their families 2 or 3 times a year, so I savor every moment!
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Looks like good times were all around!
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Good times indeed!
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You are lucky to be able to visit your family members now that you’re retired Laurie. You’re also lucky to have family. Cherish them every chance you get, just as your post says. I have no family and when I did it was very small. Enjoy them!
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I do cherish my time with family. Thank you, Linda. We are currently in Cape Cod again, visiting my sister and her husband. It’s a much quieter visit than when we were here for the 4th of July and I am enjoying it very much! You have created a blogging family for yourself! 🙂
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I have created a blogging family and I am grateful for them Laurie. That’s why I felt so badly when I was so behind, but it happens and like the others, I just moved on and will deal with the ebbs and flows of life and keeping up in due course.
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I have been so far behind with responding to comments (as you can tell) too, Linda. I guess life happens sometimes and there are only so many hours in a day. If blogging ever is not fun, we don’t have to do it anymore. I am really enjoying it now, though!
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I am enjoying it too Laurie … I got behind due to work and catastrophes at the house, but you have a good reason for being behind. It’s easier to catch up and stay caught up once the snow flies (hopefully not for a while in PA or MI).
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Ooooh! I don’t even want to think about snow yet!
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No! Banish that word! (At least for another two months at least.)
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So true. My family don’t live near by and for that reason we don’t talk very much. It’s difficult to show your love to people you don’t see often but we should try to make more of an effort. #WotW
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P.S. – the Oregon sunflower is gorgeous; I’ve never seen one in that color before.
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My son is a sunflower-lover. He planted them in all different colors!
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It was very photogenic. I signed up to go to a sunflower farm next month so hopefully the weather cooperates and I can get some fun shots.
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I hope so too. This son once took a bunch of sunflower photos and framed them in a collage for me. He was a good photographer (like you!) but doesn’t really do it anymore.
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Well that was thoughtful of your son – I am going to go to a sunflower festival in September. Because I don’t trust the weather anymore – we can’t have all weekends like this one was weather-wise, I got a season pass so I can go in October to a pumpkin patch event.
So the sunflower festival is over two weekends – surely one day out of those two weekends will be good for taking pictures, so I hope I can live up to that compliment. Their website advised booking your ticket or pass in advance to avoid long lines for general admission, so I decided to do that. They have planted lavender at this farm too so next Summer they will have 40 rows of lavender and will have a lavender festival next Summer. We have some of those lavender festivals in Michigan, but none around here. I am thinking ahead of warm events to get through the Winter.
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Have fun at your sunflower festival, Linda. There is a farm near here that has a sunflower field and a corn maze right next to each other. There is one price admission to both and you get a sunflower to take home after you complete the corn maze. I think I will ask the grandchildren if they want to do the corn maze. I will look forward to seeing your sunflower photos. They are one of my absolute favorites!
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We get a donut to take home with us. There is a corn maze as well and bounce houses for the kids. I actually sent them a message and asked if I could pay to come this weekend if the sunflowers were “ready” as I knew it would be nice and I’d skip the cornmaze and bounce house anyway, but they don’t have any visitors until the first day on September 7th.
The admission for the pass includes all four days of the festival plus the whole month of October at the pumpkin patch – I’ve never been to one, so hope it will make some good photos as well and a fun visit.
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Hmmm…I would take a donut over a sunflower any day! It sounds like it will be fun. I hope you get some good photos too!
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I guess they make them on site so they are known for their donuts. It does sound fun – I’m looking forward to it, and surely the weather won’t be bad all of the four days of the two-weekend festival, but I have an event for September 8th smack in the middle of the day. I booked a lighthouse tour last year and it was torrential rain. They only offer the lighthouse tour by the historical society one afternoon per year. I took a leap of faith – hopefully it is nicer weather this year. You have to pay in advance as well, so it’d be nice if it is not torrential rain this year – although I do concede it is inside, but it is only 40 feet tall.
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I hope the weather cooperates for the lighthouse tour and the sunflower field one as well. We have a race scheduled for September 8, so I am hoping for a rain-free day in PA too!
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A lovely post Laurie! I agree! 😀
Bless you,
Jennifer
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Thank you, Jennifer. Blessings to you too!
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Wishing us all a loving life where our love is shown by our actions.
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Yes! Actions are so important. Much more meaningful than words.
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Yes, this is a lavish invitation that we must say yes to … before it’s too late …
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Exactly – too many people wait until it is too late!
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“The light that is you.”
Turning that phrase over and over as I was reading.
Thanks for this encouraging thought, and also for sharing family pictures. I go back and forth in my “policy” about how much family stuff to post in my own writing. It’s such a gift to us that we really want to share it far and wide!
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I was a little bit apprehensive about sharing the photos too but decided to show the faces of those I write about so often. It IS a gift. One that I am thankful for every day!
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A very good reminder. Looks like you had an amazing trip!
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We did have an amazing trip. So sad to see it end!
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…fabulous sunflower, I’m headed back to the sunflower fields again tomorrow!
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I’ll be looking forward to seeing the photos from the sunflower field! Thank you!
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I love that photo of the big red flower. My sister was born in Cottage Grove, Oregon.
Actions do speak louder than words.
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Thank you. I’ve never seen a sunflower that color before. I always taught my kids that actions speak louder than words. Totally agree with you!
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Always timely advice! ❤
Great shot of the Sunflower. 🙂
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Thank you! I had never seen one that color before I saw this one in my son’s garden.
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AS the t-Shirt in one of the photographs says, Laurie, Love not Like! #WotW
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Yep! I agree with that T-shirt!
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How lovely to spend some time with your family. We have a big household here and we are constantly getting in each other’s way or winding each other up. We know deep down though, that we always have the love to get us through. Thanks for linking up to #wotw
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Yes, that’s how families are. They drive you crazy but you always know they will be there for you in the end. Thanks for the chance to link!
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Wonderful post with deep thoughts. Thank you for sharing. The pics show all the love.
I try to spend all the time I can with my family and I regret because I could spend more time with my parents.
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Yes, I have regrets about not spending more time with my parents too. All we have is today!
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I wholeheartedly agree with you Laurie, lovely photo’s of the time spent with your family x #WotW
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Thank you, Angela. We had such a wonderful time visiting family. I was sad to come home! 🙂
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How awesome to reconnect with family, even if it was briefly!
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Yes, it was too brief, but very fun.
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Lovely pics, lovely thoughts, and I think I’ve been to that restaurant! 🙂
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I forget the name of the restaurant, but it was associated with a golf course in Hood River, Oregon. Very yummy food!
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I love this reminder to love openly and extravagantly and to let go of the petty emotions. Glad you enjoyed spending time with family. #WotW
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Thank you, Louise. I need these reminders sometimes too. We really did enjoy our time with our grown-up boys and their families!
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how lovely to all get together, looks like a great time was had by all. I bet the time passed quickly.
Last time we all got together as a family was my mums funeral 17 yrs ago. #WotW
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We did have a wonderful time visiting family. We actually weren’t all together at the same time but visited 2 of our boys separately.
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What a lovely family and how wonderful to spend time with them. Precious time indeed. #wotw
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Thank you, Cheryl. We did have a lovely time visiting family!
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