And what did you want? To call myself beloved, to feel myself beloved on the earth.~Raymond Carver

"It feels good to be liked," I said. My granddaughter looked directly into my eyes and nodded, "It does." She smiled then and looked down at the letter she was writing to a boy who had braved to tell her that he liked her more than a friend.

"I want to be honest. I like him too. And I want to say that my parents have rules about boys and dating. I can't date yet. I want him to know." 

I replied, "Well, being honest is a good place to begin. And perhaps you can say what you can do." Her face brightened and she exclaimed, "Yes. We can play our clarinets together. We can share what's important to us. I already know that grades are a priority for him too. That we both like spending time with our families. And I like his smile. I can say that. Do you think that's good, Minou?" 

"That's really good," I said.

Later in the week, my husband and I were at the self-checkout at the grocery store. A robust woman wearing a Santa hat approached us. "Let me put the senior discount in for you," she beamed. "Every dollar saved makes a difference." As we grabbed our bags and walked toward the exit, my husband called out "Happy Holidays" to the friendly clerk. She responded, "Merry Christmas, Darling." A man behind us said, "Did you hear she called your husband, darling? I bet he liked that!" I thought to myself, "I think we all long to be called darling by someone who loves us."

Romantic love, though, is imperfect. Even when it is good and honest. Even when someone calls us darling. 

At Christmas, we celebrate the One who arrived to give us what we all want--to be the beloved, to feel beloved on this earth. 

I am the light of the world. Whoever follows me will never walk in darkness, but will have the light of life.~John 8:12