LABOR OF LOVE

Long queue at the boarding gate - “La distance n'y fait rien; il n'y a que le premier pas qui coûte. - Distance doesn't matter; it is only the first step that is difficult.”

Too many people think they have nothing to offer. The can't build a house, teach a math course, repair an automobile or paint a beautiful picture! They feel they are less valuable than others.

One man applied for a job as a handyman. The prospective employer asked, "Can you do carpentry?" The man answered in the negative.

"How about bricklaying? " Again the man answered, "No."

The employer asked, "Well, what about electrical work?"

The man said "No, I don't know anything about that, either."

Finally the employer said, "Well, tell me then what is handy about you?"

The man replied, "I live just around the corner."

His greatest ability was his availability. But beyond your availability, you may have more to offer than you think. For WHO you are is often more important than WHAT you do. Let me explain.

Millions of tourists have visited Taj Mahal in India. Some say that stepping through the vast sandstone gate is like immersing oneself in a photo. The Taj Mahal glistens in the light of dawn, glowing like a sculpted ember.

It was built by an emperor of India for his beloved wife, whom he called Taj Mahal. She died in childbirth, and as she departed, the story goes, she asked him to build her something beautiful and to visit the site each year on their anniversary and light a candle.

Millions of precious and semiprecious stones adorn the walls. Lapis, jade, quartz, amber, emeralds and onyx, among others, are set into the white marble. Marvelously detailed arrangements of these polished and shaped stones form garlands of flowers, both timeless and exquisite. One can only imagine gnarled fingers lifting blocks of white marble, shaping and polishing the blocks until they were as smooth as an infant's tummy.

The Taj Mahal was designed to reflect the different moods of the day, and as the sun rises, the mausoleum whitens, almost as though daylight were bleaching it. The white marble wondrously reflects the light around it, seemingly changing colors throughout the day.

Built as a labor of love, it is truly one of the great wonders of the world. Your life, too, can become a labor of love.

The Taj Mahal is made of many of earth's finest materials. Similarly, your life can also be built of the finest of qualities: character, commitment, devotion, integrity and honor.

The Taj Mahal is adorned with jewels. Likewise, your life can bear fruits of love, joy, peace, kindness, hope and more.

You may have more to offer than you realize. Perhaps what you generously give away is your own beautiful life. And that is the best gift of all.

From Lifesupport.

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