Love Me! Poem by Elizabeth Padillo Olesen

'Love me to make me happy
Love me to ward off loneliness inside me
Love me to fulfill me
Love me to value me
Love me to belong to somebody.
Love me to be with you in spirit and body
Love me to restore my dignity
Love me to feel being loved by you.'

'Love me in the morning
Love me at noon
Love me in the evening
Love me at dawn
Love me in all seasons
Love me when crises strike
Never get tired to love me,
support me and affirm me.'

But baby, love is not something
to be demanded from a beloved.
Love is a gift, freely given
It is a willed sacrifice.
Love is not only an emotion
that flickers off and on
Love is decision.
Love is the will to love.

And since we as humans
cannot perfectly love
We need to learn from Jesus,
The source of perfect love:
the act and will
of serving,
of forgiving,
of renewing.
of saving by giving his life.
________
April 24,2020