All you need is love.

I never was a great Beetles' fan, but in this song title they got it right. The older I get (and that is becoming formidable) the more I realize the point of life is loving and being loved.

First, of course, is loving and being loved by God. We have great documentation of His love in that He loved and gave His Son to clean up our dirty tracks and open a bank account of infinite merit on our behalf. He did this because He loved us. When you believe that, you can't stop loving Him in return.

I was, however, thinking about relatives and friends. Life is work or boredom or terror without the joy of loving and being loved by friends. I was reminded of this during our vacation week of travels to visit just such people. Some of them drove a long distance just to see us. Maybe they had a dual purpose in driving so far. We couldn't be that important. Others are relatives who are pushovers for a place to crash. Do we take them for granted, or do we have that loving understanding that there isn't much we would not do for one another?

We saw a niece who has always been a winner. No surprise that she is now a pediatrician with a great husband and adorable little boy. We were with our son who is just beginning to make it as a chiropractor in San Francisco. It's nice to hear a satisfied patient who has taken a liking to Jonathan, and sings his praise to all potential customers she can meet. She is an older Asian lady, and for good measure she took us (Barbara, Jon and me) out to lunch at a beachfront landmark.

We visited friends--a couple that I married--in Modesto. They seem to have such a wholesome existence with a vegetable garden, several acres of almond trees and a landscaping business. Their boys are all handsome and courteous, and Brad has taught them hunting, as witnessed by the 7 or 8 deer heads mounted on the living room wall. The dark side is the story of a drifter who kicked in their door and stole all the loose money he could find in the house and rode off on a stolen bike. We have lived in crime-ridden Carson for 25 years and have never had anything like that. The lesson: depravity is in the hearts of all men everywhere.