Those Three Most Beautiful Words

By Jimmy Reed —— Bio and Archives February 9, 2017

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On that unusually warm February evening, a fresh breeze wafted through the window, and no doubt the full moon’s alabaster face gazed down on lovers everywhere. One of my favorite singers, “Babbling” Brook Benton, crooned across the radio waves, and I thought … I’m a romantic! Why? Women. But since no such creature shares my humble abode, and since the babbler rolled back the years to my youth, I couldn’t resist an overpowering urge to get up and dance. Living alone isn’t fun, but has its advantages. If you want to act a fool, you can, so I waltzed with a broom.

“I don’t want to live; I want to love first, and live incidentally.”

Women. Ever since they evolved from a hank o’ hair and a piece o’ bone, the world has revolved around them. In the Old Testament book of Genesis, the Bible seems to confirm this: When men began to multiply on earth, and daughters were born, the sons of God saw that the daughters of men were fair, and they took them wives. The daughters of men still attract me. Even in my antiquity, I prefer the company of women to those of my own gender, as I did in my younger years when my three daughters were the center of my universe. Indeed, this preference proved to be an asset necessary for my sanity’s preservation. Though they turned my hair from blonde to gray, I still miss the company of those little girls who grew up like weeds, so swiftly. This irresistible attraction has always been a key component in the Lord’s plan for his children. From caveman times until now, if males had not wooed women, none of us would be here today. Ah, this thing called love. Other words are bound by definitions; love isn’t. Its meaning comes with expressing it; then it becomes life. As novelist Zelda Fitzgerald once said, “I don’t want to live; I want to love first, and live incidentally.”

And, regardless of time, place, or circumstance, males and females have the capacity to connect with each other. For those wishing to express love, somewhere a heart willing to accept it is beating. And when those hearts connect, and man and woman seek to preserve this most precious gift, they will, as medical missionary Albert Schweitzer once said, “be recompensed beyond measure.” Love is not only life, but also faith, for as Mother Teresa said, “If faith is lacking, it is because too much selfishness, too much concern for personal gain prevents it. Love and faith go together: They complete each other.” Who can doubt Ann Landers’ wisdom? Of love, she said, “If you have love in your life, it can make up for many missing things. If you don’t, no matter what else there is, it is not enough.” Gentlemen, don’t let Valentine’s Day pass by without doing something special for your special lady. Give her flowers; take her out to eat, buy here a pretty dress. But, most importantly, say to her, “I love you,” — those three most beautiful words.