Gus made his way through the cemetery, putting his weight on his walking cane. His knee was acting up again, but walking usually loosened it up a bit. When he reached his usual spot, he laid a single rose on the gravestone, unfolded his cane into a seat, and perched on it.

            “Good morning, Ruthie.” He squinted in the sunlight. “Looks like another warm one today. Not much going on around here.” He blew his nose into his handkerchief. “I miss you so much. I hope they appreciate you up there, cause it’s sure not the same around here without you.”

            He sat in silence for a long while. The sun rose in the sky, and white puffy clouds floated by. When his knee started to stiffen, he stood. “Well, that’s all I have for today. I’ll see you next Monday, my sweet.” He made the short walk down the street to his house.

            As he approached, activity at his next-door-neighbor’s house caught his attention. “Well, I’ll be. Has someone finally moved into Ron and Judy’s place?” He drew closer and watched as a moving van drove away from the house. A moment later, a young man appeared from behind a car parked in the driveway, a stack of boxes in his arms. He carried the boxes into the house and returned to the open trunk of the car. He glanced Gus’s way as he approached. A wide smile split his face.

            “Howdy neighbor! I’m Caleb. Just moved in.”

            Gus raised his eyebrows. “Welcome, Caleb. I’m Gus. Don’t let me keep you. I’m sure you have a lot to do.”

            Caleb moved from his spot in the driveway and crossed into Gus’s yard, extending his hand. “The boxes will keep. I’ll be unpacking for weeks. It’s just me in the house, so there’s no one to complain about how long I take. What about you? Anyone else in that house of yours?”

            Gus winced at the reminder and shook the young man’s hand. “Nope. Just me.”

            Caleb didn’t seem to notice his pain. “I’m so glad to have you as a neighbor, Gus. I’m sure you have lots of useful things to teach me about this neighborhood. This is my first time owning a house.”

            Gus suppressed a sigh. Kids these days. Still, he’d be polite. It was important to be kind to your neighbors. “Sure. What do you need to know?”

            Over the next several days, Gus saw Caleb constantly. His questions were endless.

            “Where’s the best grocery store around here?”

            “What kind of lawnmower should I buy?”

            “Who makes the best takeout pizza?”

            “What day do we put the trash and recycling out?”

             By the end of the week, Gus was at Caleb’s house, eating the best takeout pizza in the area. He’d brought over the checkerboard. After three games, Caleb’s questions grew more serious.

              “How did you meet your wife?”

               At that, Gus couldn’t help but smile. “I met my Ruthie when we were 16 years old. I told her the first day I met her I was going to marry her. She laughed and waved a hand at me. ‘I bet you say that to all the girls,’ she said. I took her hand and gazed straight into those deep blue eyes. I told her I’d never said it to anyone before and I’d never say it to anyone else. She stared at me, and the prettiest pink color spread across her cheeks. She pretended not to like me, but every time I saw her after that, her cheeks gave her away.”

              Caleb grinned at him. “How’d you convince her you were serious?”

              “I walked her home from school every single day. And every Monday, I gave her a present. A sack of penny candy, a bunch of wildflowers, a comic book… Nothing expensive, just something to show her I was thinking of her.”

               “Why Mondays?”

                “Because that’s the day we met. So every week, I gave her a little something special to show her how important she was to me.”

                 Caleb nodded. “Wow. That’s beautiful. How long did you have to do that before she finally agreed to date you?”

                  Gus smiled at his neighbor. “We went on our first official date three months later. I worked in Chapman’s grocery store all through high school and saved all my pennies. The Monday after we graduated high school, I gave her a diamond ring. We were married 56 years in June.”

                   Caleb reset the checkerboard. “That’s really nice. How long did you do the Monday thing?”

                   Gus stared at him, confused. “What do you mean?”

                    “I mean the presents. How long did you give them to her?”

                    Gus leaned back in his chair and folded his hands. “It hasn’t always been easy. About ten years back I had a heart attack. I went into the hospital on a Saturday and was there for five days. Ruthie barely left my side. But when she went home to shower and change, I slipped my nurse a few bucks and she bought her some fuzzy socks from the gift shop, which I gave her on Monday.” Gus chuckled. “That woman always had cold feet.”

                     Caleb stared at him. “Do you mean to tell me you gave your wife a gift every Monday until she passed away?”

                      Gus shook his head. “No, son, I haven’t stopped.”

 Psalm 136: 1-3

Give thanks to the Lord, for he is good.
His love endures forever.
Give thanks to the God of gods.
His love endures forever.
Give thanks to the Lord of lords:
His love endures forever.

God, You tell us in each of the 26 verses of Psalm 136 that Your love endures forever. Thank You for Your faithfulness to us, and thank You for those who model that faithfulness in everyday life. Help us to be faithful to those around us, especially those who are closest to us. We don’t need to give gifts every week, but a card or email to people we care about can mean a lot. Help us love others the way You love us. Thank You for giving us Your Word – the most beautiful love letter ever written.