Five Minute Friday is an?exercise?in writing without?over-thinking.
1. Write for 5 minutes flat with no editing, tweaking or self critiquing. (I still struggle with this.)
2. Link back to?the Gypsy Mama and invite others to join in. ?(The button code can be found in the side bar on her site.)
3.?Go and tell the person who linked up before you what their words meant to you.
Today?s prompt is Tender.
Begin
When I first saw the word for today’s Five Minute Friday my first thought was that my friend Mary Kathryn was going to say “Love Me Tender” somewhere in her Five Minute Friday post. I haven’t checked to see, and I could be wrong; but I love how the prompt made me think of a friend. That is a tender thought indeed. Tender is the love I feel for my friends, the love I feel for my family. Sometimes it is a fierce, passionate love, but most of the time it is tender. That is also how I feel the love of the universe. Tender doesn’t mean passive. Tender emotions are what prompts us to be gentle, and one must be deliberate to be gentle. You have to be conscious of the soft, gentle way. To be tender is equally deliberate. It comes with choice. It is voluntary to the point that it can become involuntary once you have accepted it. There are times I feel that force that moves me, call it what you will, and it is tender. It is a whisper that makes no demands, but waits on me. The challenges I face aren’t meant to punish, but to test my resolve. They pass and the tender remains…
Fin
What are your thoughts? What words bring to mind a particular friend?
*Photo: Summer Lillies by Doug Hay, obtained through Flickr.
RONIII! BAH! THIS IS HILARIOUS! have you SEEN my post yet!? it’s the very first thing i thought of and is, in fact, THE TITLE of my post! HA! am i that predictable? or you’ve just known me that long? since college, when i sang that at the beginning and the end? please tell me that’s what you thought about because it would mean the world to me. it was also a special song between my dad and i.
THIS CRACKS ME UP.
and, also. 🙂
i love the rest of your words. that tender doesn’t mean passive, but gentle. uuggghhh…SO good and SO true.
i love you, girl. it’s always nice to be thought about.
xo
I about rolled out of my chair laughing. I could have been wrong. I mean, I’m not all knowing, but it is hilarious that I ended up right. I love you and your writing style. The way you think and relate to things is beautiful.
Love this! Love you!
Thank you, Dianna. I can’t wait to spend some much needed time with you and Meredith soon.
I was enjoying your post and then I got to the comments and I have to say that I love what went on here today. Thanks for letting others see that- because I think it is a truly sweet thing (you would say universe, I would say God) when hearts are entwined in such a way that you can’t help but think of a loved one when you hear something.
So, thank you for sharing. I also love the idea of tenderness being deliberate. It is my prayer for my life this year that I would be deliberate in what I do. All the best!!!!
Thank you, Becky. I’m glad that in honestly sharing the goodness is also shared.
I love, love your take on tender, and it is so very true. Passion is all about letting go and giving in to emotions, but tenderness is a deliberate emotion, and one that requires effort. Thank you for giving me a different perspective. 🙂
Thank you, Brook. I think we forget how intentional tenderness is, and in some ways I think that is what makes it preferable.