The Story Behind the Saying

Several of our blog readers have recently asked what is the story behind the closing saying on each of our posts....you are loved.  I wrote it up one  time but can't for the life of me find it in my previous posts.  So I am posting it again for our newer readers.

The Store Behind the Saying.....


In 1998 I worked at the library at Alamosa High School, Alamosa, Colorado, as an aide.  Nora, the Librarian, bought a big "hotel front desk" type bell for the check-out desk, so students could ring it for service if I wasn't at the desk.  Well, seems it didn't matter if I was at the desk or not, those kids enjoyed pounding that  bell every time they came into the library. Ding, ding, ding all day long I heard that bell being hit a hundred or more times a day. Of course they didn't hit is just once; oh, no, they had to ding it two or three times each.  It was very annoying, to say the least.


One weekend I prayed for guidance on how to keep the kids from pounding on that desk bell and irrating me so much.  I came up with several novel, but probably illegal ways to stop the kids from hitting that desk bell except when they needed me.  Finally the magic idea "came to me". I know what I will do.  Every time someone  rang that bell I'm going to say "I love you". Great idea! That's what I'll do.  No respectable 14 year old teenager wants some old grandma yelling "I love you" when they ring that bell.  I figured it would only take me a coule of days of yelling out "I love you"  and that would take care of the bell problem ..... oh, sure.  Didn't work out that way.


Monday morning I was all set to go.  First young man walked in the library and I was sitting right there at the desk, my head some 12 inches away from that desk bell.  He reaches over and hits the top of that desk bell and it goes ding-ding and I said quite loudly "I love you" with a big smile on my face.  Well, the young man was shocked and his mouth dropped open in surprise.  He quickly proceeded to sit down at one of the tables.  Next few kids came in and rang the bell and got my new greeting.  They seemed amused and even smiled.  As the day wore on, each bell ringer got told "I love you".


The next few days the word got around the school to go to the library, ring the bell and see what happened.  We had a large turnout at the library that day, with a lot of kids I'd never seen in the library before.  I'd be away from the desk putting away books in the stacks and the bell would ring and from the corner of the library I'd gleefully call out "I love you"....they had no idea where I was located.....it was like a voice from the ethers was calling to them....kind of erry. The kids would watch a newcomer ring the bell and laugh at their reaction when I yelled "I love you".  It all became a big game to the students....they continued to ring that bell and seemed to enjoy hearing my irratated "I love you".  Some guys would just step in the library to ring the bell and then just leave...smiles on their faces.


It all came to a head one Friday afternoon several months later.  The last bell had rung and the students were filing out of the school and onto the school busses.  One lone boy came into the library...no one else was around...he rang the bell, I looked at him, smiled and said "I love you"; he continued to look at me with a sorrowful expression on his face and rang the bell again and I said "I love you" (with an inquisitive look on my face).  And then he rang it one more time and again I said "I love you" with more meaning.  The teenager then smiled, said "thank you" and began to leave.  I called to him and asked "son, why did you ring the bell three times? He said "Because it will be three days until I hear anyone say those words and those three "I love yous" you gave me will have to hold me over until I see you on Monday."


I smiled and told him goodbye and then tears came to my eyes and I cried. It broke my heart.  To think a kid wanted to hear that someone loved him so much he would ring that bell just to hear the words....no one at home would be saying those words to him....sad....sad....sad!!!


From that day on it never again bothered me to hear that bell ring....I happily shouted out "I love you", now saying it with much heartfelt meaning.  I learned a valuable lesson...you are never too young or goo old or in a stage in life when we DON'T need to hear we are loved....even pimpled face, shy or popular teenage boys or girls....everyone wants to know someone loves them.  For the next five years that I worked at that library "I love you" became my mantra.  I said it to students, the principal, teachers, a saleman, even to friends on the phone....everyone got told they were loved.  


Graduating students would return to visit and come to the library to say "hi".  They all commented that my saying "I love you" was one of the things they remember the most about high school.  That warmed my heart.  God knew what He was doing when he answered my prayer for guidance about that annoying desk bell.  His answer was perfect. Love was the answer.


When I changed jobs I continued to say "I love you" to customers, sales people, bosses, clerks. It was how I end every conversation.  It just became a part of me....I said it to everyone. So when I started our blog I wanted to include it somehow and it became "you are loved" as my closing line.


So that is the story behind the saying....now you remember, you are loved!!!