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By Betsy Ore Glass

Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud. It is not rude, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps no record of wrongs. Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth. It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always preservers. – 1 Corinthians 13:4-7 

At bedtime I would tell my children that I loved them as much as all the grains of sand in the world and then some. This was an evening ritual and it included me stretching my arms out from side to side as far as I could reach to add emphasis to my claim of love. My daughter and son went to sleep every evening knowing their parents loved them with abundance.

Each beach has its own type of sand. Sometimes the sand is white and sugary and very fine. Other beaches have course sand mixed with small gravel. There are certainly plenty of beaches to explore in search of the favorite shore. As I took walks in the sand or built sandcastles with my children when they were little, we took great delight in being at the shore. But sometimes there were other people we observed that seemed to fight the sand, constantly brushing it off themselves and shaking out their towel.

Love is a choice. We can choose to love or hate. We can either build sandcastles in the sand or we can constantly shake the sand out of the towel. It is our choice, but God shows us in his teachings that love is the best way. He tells us in Galatians 5:22 that “the fruit of the spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control.” If we practice these, we will surely live in love and so will those that share our lives. Giving love and receiving love is at the heart of living a godly life.

Betsy Ore Glass has long-standing ties to the Outer Banks. From Virginia Beach, her family bought a vacation cottage in the 60s and her love of the area began. Later in the 90s, Betsy and her husband bought a weekend cottage and introduced the area to their children. Then Betsy’s parents retired to KDH where the family gathered often. Reach her at betsyglass1@gmail.com. To learn more about her new book, Reflections by the Sea, visit betsyoreglass.com.

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