Saturday, September 9, 2017
Graniteville • Vaucluse • Warrenville
Vol. 3, No. 5
A labor of love – what it means to me BY ANNE FULCHER Merriam-Webster defines labor as a: “expenditure of physical or mental effort especially when difficult or compulsory,” or b: “human activity that provides the goods or services in an economy.” But I like to amp the phrase up a little more and think about what a “Labor of Love” means to me. The Thesaurus defines a labor of love as “productive work performed voluntarily without material reward or compensation.” In a day and time when the almighty dollar seems to drive the workforce, maybe we should all be driven more by a labor of love. I just celebrated the 28th birthday of my youngest son this week and let’s TRULY talk about a labor of love! He came into this world weighing a mere 9 pounds 14.5 ounces and that was with him being delivered 3 weeks early. Yes, Ben Fulcher was almost a toddler when he came into this world. No truer love is known as when a mother, or father for that matter, meets their child for the very first time. The fierce emotion that comes from within is one of the strongest feelings I have ever had and it has not gone away. Our passion and values lead us to our chosen labor of love. It may be preaching the gospel,
volunteering at a local church or organization or it may even be your chosen career. When you believe in something so strongly that money is not the driving force behind why you do what you do, well that is what a labor of love is all about. There are many people in the Aiken County area who work doggedly to aide local charities to better the lives of those in need. If you have never had the opportunity to volunteer at one of these organizations such as ACTS, Christ Central, Our Lady of the Valley, just to name a few, well you are missing out on seeing what a selfless labor of love can do for those who have come upon hard times. Quite often we forget that many of our friends and neighbors may be going through things that are difficult to talk about. One of the hardest things in life is to ask for help when in need. You can never know how low you feel when you can’t make ends meet for whatever reason. I do because I have been there and after that difficult time in my life I am a firm believer that we are put on this earth to raise one another up in difficult times. Find your Labor of Love and let it make your heart sing by not expecting anything in return. You will be amazed that the reward will far outweigh any amount of money you could have received.