Sunday, October 11, 2009

The Need for Love

An eighty-five year old man lost his wife. A year later he began seeing female friends. Criticism ensued. Why? Would they prefer he spent the rest of his life like a zombie watching television for hours on end?

Sometimes the young folks think they have a monopoly on love. Not so. No matter the age, all of us have the need for love or friendship, a relationship, or a closeness, some sort of experience in which another person appreciates you and enjoys your company.

Toddlers in nurseries seek each other out. Small children in schools, when they go out to play, look for someone to “pal around with”, to share pleasure in playing, a child to laugh with, another peer to show by a smile… I like you.

Teenagers and young adults clamor for the presence of other humans to validate them, to brighten their existence, and perchance to form a closeness they have not had before.

My grandmother died at ninety-six years of age. One of the last words she uttered was the name Benjamin, the name of her husband, the man who abandoned her once and then returned to her life asking for forgiveness for his foolish act. She rejected him but apparently never forgot him. He remained in her mind, the love of her life, until her dying day.

The elderly gentleman mentioned in the first paragraph deserves someone to accompany him in life as do we all. And so, Dear Readers, I wish you friendships, love, good working relationships and happiness in your lives.

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