Love is patient.
Huddled in the back table of the library are a teacher and six-year-old boy. They've been going over the same ten-page book all week. Yet still she sits and waits for him to sound out each word and to help him when he struggles.
Love is kind.
Every day a homeless man walks the same route through town trying to find odd jobs and scraps of food. Every day he sits outside of a Subway by the park to watch families play. A college kid who always works the lunch shift will come out with a sandwich for him, free of charge.
It does not envy.
Two sorority sisters apply for the same internship. Both want it just as badly as the other, both deserve just as much as the other. Only one sister gets an offer. The other, instead of getting angry, encourages her to accept it and is excited for her when she does.
It does not boast.
Both Tim and Jake work hard at their jobs. Tim is constantly getting praise from his boss and just received a big raise. Jake's ten hours of overtime last week went unnoticed by everyone. Tim never makes Jake feel bad about not making as much money and would listen to him rant about his boss for hours if that makes him feel better.
It is not proud.
As Martha got older and sicker, she felt less and less like a human and more like a burden. It was a relief at first when she was put in a nursing home because she knew her family wouldn't worry as much. But she soon felt like a burden on the faculty there, especially her nurse. Every day at noon, she would come in to give Martha a bath. Every day Martha would apologize and every day in response, her nurse would kneel down beside her with the biggest smile on her face and say, "It's okay Martha. I really don't mind."
It does not dishonor others.
Late one night, a group of girls sat talking around a box of pizza. The topic of some of the girls' boyfriends came up. Linda's boyfriend had a bad reputation, so everyone started talking about how awful he was and asking Linda why she was with him. She defended him, but did not talk poorly about any of the other guys the girls were dating.
It is not self-seeking.
Even though Kelly had a huge exam in the morning, she stayed up until four in the morning with her best friend. He had been going through a hard time for quite some time now, and last night he just wanted someone to sit with him for awhile. So she did.
It is not easily angered.
After a long day at work, Sarah walks through the door to find her kids covered in flour and her kitchen a mess. Her eldest, with tears in his eyes, said they were just trying to make cookies. Sarah gives him a soft smile and kisses the top of his head. It's okay.
It keeps no record of wrongs
Every Wednesday, Father Kevin goes to his local prison to talk with the prisoners. One week, Father is informed there is a new prisoner. When he talks to her for the first time, she refused to look him in the eyes because she was so ashamed of what she did. Father Kevin took her hands and told her, "You are loved. No matter what you did."
Love does not delight in evil, but rejoices with the truth.
A mother stays up until three in the morning, waiting for her 16 year old son to come home. The next morning, she walks into his room and asks him where he was all night. He hangs his head and says he was at a party drinking. The mother sighs but says, "Thank you for being honest."
It always protects.
Walking out of his high school graduation, he knew the army wasn't going to be a party. He heard horrific stories and knew that he would never be the same after. But he went anyway.
Always trusts.
In a new relationship, the guy is still friends with someone he had a thing for for a long time. The issue is confronted, but when he promises that there isn't anything there and that they're just friends, the girl trusts him. No questions asked.
Always hopes.
After going through three months of chemotherapy, the 13 year old's parents sat in the doctor's office holding hands. The doctor informs them that the cancer has not grown anymore, but it also has not shrunk. It doesn't look good. The father just looks the doctor straight in the eyes and says, "Okay, what do we do now?"
Always perseveres.
Even after 50+ years of being married, with the ups and the downs, every morning Tom rolls over to look at his wife in the morning and thinks to himself, "I am so lucky."
Love never fails.
1 Corinthians 13:4-8
