Catholic Singles

THANK YOU ALL
BY: MARK ANTHONY ROSOLOWSKI

How does one thank a friend for their random acts of kindness and love? How does one thank those that he loves for giving him the gift of love? The gift of a piece of the heart is the greatest gift one can give, yet there are no words adequate to say thanks. The greatest gift you have given me is your love, your friendship, your prayers and a piece of your hearts. Therefore I return to all of you my love, my friendship, my prayers and my heart in return.

There is an old story of a young man with a perfect heart. His heart was without flaw, without an imperfection, without a trace of a scar. He was showing his heart to the multitudes standing before him. They marveled at his perfect heart, each in return wishing that their own hearts could be as perfect as his was. Sadly they knew that their hearts were not perfect, they hung their heads in shame and wept.

An old man came out of the crowds, proclaiming his heart to be the most Beautiful and perfect heart in the land. As he showed his heart to the multitudes gathered around they all gasped and shrank back. The old man turned to the young man and proudly displayed his heart. The young man laughed at the old man and sneered, “How can you call that ragged, scared, heart beautiful, look at it there are pieces missing and in other places it is filled by pieces that do not fit. It is not a beautiful heart it is ugly, now leave so the people can admire a heart such as mine, a heart that is beautiful.

The old man smiled and looked at the young man and said, “Yes you heart is without flaw, it is unblemished. It beats without a scar, yes your heart is perfect but it is not beautiful.” “What do you mean old man that my heart is not beautiful, look at how all have admired my heart and how they trembled when they all saw yours, are you so old that you cannot see.”

The old man smiled and calmly said, “A perfect heart is not the same as a beautiful heart.” He Continued on, “You see these scars on my heart, they appeared when my heart was broken, when one I loved died, my heart broke at their leaving, never to be completely healed, the scars are the love that I still carry for them to this day.” “You see these ill fitting pieces, these are the places where I have torn out a piece of my heart and given it to another, I have replaced it with the pieces they have given me, not an exact fit, but it is there.” He looked at his heart and pointed to several gapping holes, he added, “Do you see these holes, these are the places that I have torn away parts of my heart and given it to others, they have not yet returned the piece of their heart to me, but the gaps remind me of them and the hopes that one day they will return a piece to me.”

The old man then reached into his chest, torn off a piece of his heart and handed it to the young man. The young man looked at his own heart and tore a piece out and handed it to the old man as he took the piece the old man was offering him. As the young man placed the piece of the old mans heart into his own he noticed it was not a perfect fit. He saw the jagged edges where the piece did not quite fit. But as he looked at his heart, no longer perfect, but more beautiful then it was before, he looked at the old man and wept and said a quiet, “I love you.”

The old man with a tear in his eye looked at the young man and said, “Keeping your heart to yourself, will keep it looking pristine and beautiful, but you miss out on the gift of love. Giving your heart to another may cause pain and may at times leave your heart pained and scarred, but love creates a beauty within, that makes a heart more beautiful then one that is perfect.”

The young man again reached to his heart and felt the strong regular beat, he wept at the old man’s words. He reached out and hugged the old man and thanked him again, asking how he could ever repay him for the words and the love. The old man embraced the young man and told him, “You have already thanked me, by giving me your love.”

As the old man walked away the young man felt a sensation in his heart, he looked down at it and saw a scar forming on his heart, a scar to remind him of the old man’s love. He then marveled at how beautiful his heart was.

My friends, you have all made my heart more beautiful, always remember it is not the perfect heart that counts, but the heart that has been used, is now jagged and scared that is beautiful, because the love that comes from it is beautiful