REFLECTIONS

Recalling a Lesson in Love

Throughout the years God has blessed my life with people whose lives influenced the way I hope to lead mine. I give thanks to God for the blessings of them. In previous Reflections I have written brief portraits of some of them in thanksgiving for what they have meant to me. But just as importantly, I shared their lives as a reminder to us all that the lives we lead also influence those around us.

Today I recall a man whose courage, hope, and faith taught a lesson in love that I will always remember. He was one of those extraordinary people my dad told me I would never forget.

His name was Alfred but few people knew that. To the world he was Head. The moniker stuck from his days as Head Yell Leader at his beloved Aggie Land. I suspect it stuck uniquely with him because no one else ever measured in so many ways to the role.

Head was a man of courage. As young family man and an aspiring attorney at the beginning of his career, he battled through the threatening perils of polio, making a miraculous recovery not envisioned by those who treated him. But he did not give credit to his courage. He gave credit to God’s response to the prayers of his many friends in the town where I grew up. And he never forgot those prayers either. Decades after his recovery, he stood before a large gathering to tearfully express his gratitude for them.

While his courage was extraordinary, I will remember him most for his kindhearted love. When someone was in need Head was there, whether to lift a disappointed young boy from the dirt, provide encouragement to a man always down on his luck, or console a grieving family at the loss of a loved one. It was like God gave him strong shoulders and he used them unselfishly to lift others in need.

He honored his wife as few men I have ever seen, always referring to her affectionately as Mrs. Davis. He loved the Lord and lived in exemplary service to him.  Surely today he stands with the Savior and shares in the Master’s happiness.

So as I think forward to a day of nationwide Thanksgiving, I count the life of Head David among God’s many blessings. His life was a lesson in love that shaped lives far beyond his own awareness. Mine is one so blessed.

You are the light of the world,

Richard +

www.reflectingthesavior.org

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