I took a short and impromptu trip to the Bay Area to my parent’s house, the home I grew up in. My grandmother had just been put on hospice and I knew it was time to come home and introduce her to my new son Zeke. It was a weekend filled with family and lots of love. I will cherish these moments and memories forever. This poem by Robert William Service expresses my thoughts about home and my family perfectly.
Four little letters unto each;
And yet you will not find in all
The wide and gracious range of speech
Two more so tenderly complete:
When angels talk in Heaven above,
I’m sure they have no words more sweet
Than Home and Love.
Just Home and Love! it’s hard to guess
Which of the two were best to gain;
Home without Love is bitterness;
Love without Home is often pain.
No! each alone will seldom do;
Somehow they travel hand and glove:
If you win one you must have two,
Both Home and Love.
And if you’ve both, well then I’m sure
You ought to sing the whole day long;
It doesn’t matter if you’re poor
With these to make divine your song.
And so I praisefully repeat,
When angels talk in Heaven above,
There are no words more simply sweet
Than Home and Love.
