The Most Enduring and Powerful Virtue

"Love is the very essence of life. It is the pot of gold at the end of the rainbow. Yet it is not only found at the end of the rainbow. Love is at the very beginning also, and from it springs the beauty that arches across the sky on a stormy day. Love is the security for which children weep, the yearning of youth, the adhesive that binds marriage, and the lubricant that prevents devastating friction in the home; it is the peace of old age, the sunlight of hope shining through death. How rich are those who enjoy it in their associations with family, friends, and neighbors. Love, like faith, is a gift from God. It is also the most enduring and powerful virtue."

- Gordon B. Hinckley, Standing for Something, p. 3

I have long loved this little segment from President Hinckley's book. I particularly like the line about love being the "lubricant that prevents devastating friction in the home". When I think about love within my home I see how it allows my private life to serve as a training ground for my public life. Now, I like to think that my public and private selves are one in the same, but this is not always the case. Because I find myself occasionally struggling to represent my best self in private, I feel immense gratitude for the adhesive qualities of love that allow forgiveness and mercy to be a part of my home. Because of this security, I am able to work to improve myself in a secure place.

Considering a different facet of this love, I find that the more I am able to demonstrate that I care for others, the more I am able to achieve a transparency between my public and private lives. I find that when this transparency is achieved, I am able to have the greatest influence on others. It seems that this influence is achieved most when other sense love that I have for them. It can be difficult in certain professional arenas to demonstrate love. However, I like to think that there are ways that love, or at least genuine concern can be exhibited even in the toughest professional settings. A simple wave, a warm handshake, taking time to ask about family, etc are all ways to open the doors to an individual’s soul.

Once these doors are open, the wall separating my public self from my private self crumbles and I feel that others can better experience my transparent self. By minimizing my private self, I allow others to see much more of who I am. I believe they are comfortable knowing that I feel love for who they are and what they can become. I have also found that this is the key to earning their confidence and positioning myself to exert righteous influence in their life. Equally, it is the key to allowing them to share their attributes and experiences that can influence me for the better. How rich am I who enjoys love in my associations with family, friends, and neighbors.