He Gets It From Me (We Say With a Giggle)

 

Mike and I have this long running joke between us. When one of our adult kids does something kind, thoughtful or just plain good, one of us will grin and say “He gets that from me,” or “she definitely takes after me.” It’s always said in fun, never seriously because we both know the truth. Goodness isn’t inherited like eye color, it’s learned from watching.

The other day one of our sons posted a Snapchat reel of a week’s worth of meals he had made for a friend’s mother, a woman who had just placed her husband in hospice care. No fanfare, no explanation, just quiet love and thoughtfulness in containers.

I said to Mike, “He’s so thoughtful.” Then half laughing, at the same time, we both said, “He gets that from me.” Without missing a beat, Mike said “I’ll give you this one.”

I stood there for a moment, genuinely confused. Why would he give me the credit this time? And then it hit me. I was standing there, half way out the door with a big bowl of homemade chicken soup. Soup I was about to go deliver to a friend and her grandson who were home sick with the flu.

Sometimes we don’t realize how deeply ordinary acts of kindness are woven into our days. Dropping off a meal, sending a message, sitting quietly with someone who is hurting. We don’t label these things as “good deeds.” It is just what love does when it sees a need. I think that’s how it’s supposed to be.

There have been so many times when Mike and I have been the ones on the receiving end of it and with his health, we continue to be with the necessary rides to and from dialysis. We have had meals dropped off in the past, rides given, messages sent at just the right time, our lawn mowed or the driveway plowed, help offered before we found the words or swallowed our pride long enough to ask. We know what it feels like to be held up by the goodness of others and we never forget it. It’s about remembering, remembering the hands that steadied us when we were tired. Remembering the love and kindness that met us in our hardest places and choosing whenever we can to pass the same love along.

Kindness doesn’t have to be expensive. It doesn’t require grand gestures or perfect timing. Sometimes it looks like a week of meals packed into containers. Sometimes it’s soup carried across town. Sometimes it’s simply showing up and saying, you’re not alone, a card sent through the mail, a phone call or even a simple compliment or smile.

Maybe that’s how it gets passed down, not as a trait to take credit for but as a way of living that says, freely we’ve received, so freely we give. If our children learned anything from us, I pray it’s this; love doesn’t ask who’s watching, love just moves.

Scripture tells us not to announce our kindness, not to shine a spotlight on ourselves when we do good. Real love doesn’t need applause. It simply shows up, often unnoticed even by the one offering it.

Yes, we’ll probably always joke when one of our kids, or even our grandkids (haha) do something good and say “they get it from me”, we’ll laugh and keep the joke going between us. But, deep down, we know the truth, it doesn’t really come from us at all. It comes from love received and passed on.

“Let us not become weary in doing good, for at the proper time we will reap a harvest if we do not give up” Galatians 6:9

“And do not forget to do good and share with others, for with such sacrifices, God is pleased.” Hebrews 13:16