Heart song
There was a great man who married the woman of his
dreams. With their love, they created a little lovely
girl.
When the little girl was growing up, the great man
would hug her and tell her, “I love you, little girl.” The little girl would pout
and say, “I’m not a little girl anymore.” Then the man would laugh and say,
“but to me, you’ll always be my little girl.”
The little girl who-was-not-little-anymore decided to leave her home and
went into the world. As she learned more about herself, she learned more
about the man. One of his strengths was his ability to express his love to his
family. It didn’t matter where she went in the world, the man would call her
and say, “I love you, little girl.”
The day came when the little girl who-was-not-little-anymore received an
unexpected phone call. The great man was damaged. He had had a stroke.
He couldn’t talk, smile, walk, hug, dance or tell the little girl who-was-not-
little-anymore that he loved her.
And so she went to the side of the great man. When she walked into the
room and saw him, he looked small and not strong at all. He looked at her
and tried to speak, but he could not. The little girl did the only thing she
could do. She sat next to the great man, and drew her arms around the
useless shoulders of her father. Her head on his chest, she thought of many
things. She remembered she had always felt protected and cherished by the
great man. She felt grief for the loss she was to endure, the words of love
that had comforted her.
And then she heard from within the man, the beat of his heart. The heart beat
on, steadily unconcerned about the damage to the rest of the body. And
while she rested there, the magic happened. She heard what she needed to
hear.
His heart beat out the words that his mouth could no longer say…I love you,
little girl…I love you, little girl…and she was comforted.
- Patty Hansen
