In the Gospel of John, chapter 13 describes the scene where Jesus washes his disciples’ feet. This story stands as one of the great examples of how to love each other. It’s a short story, yet a powerful one. I think much of its power stems from the fact that it illustrates clearly and tangibly what to serve others truly looks like. As a young boy, I also benefited from a clear example of servant love. But instead of being a simple one-off story, this example was repeated each week in our home.
My father worked in masonry construction, which often meant installing concrete floors in buildings. Because he was a meticulous perfectionist, instead of only using a machine to smooth the poured concrete floors, at the end of each day he would get on his knees and hand trowel the floors one last time to insure they had a uniform look throughout. He did this each day on knees that ached from years spent in a kneeling position.
My mother also liked things to look neat and a certain way. Each week she would get on her knees and scrub the kitchen floor rather than use a mop from a standing position. She was convinced that you couldn’t clean nearly as well from a standing position. Daily sweeping or a quick mopping was okay, but a complete clean each week from the knees needed to be done.
Eventually, my dad concluded that after my mom had spent the day teaching pre-school, she shouldn’t be coming home and getting on her knees to clean the kitchen floor. So instead, after working physically harder than anyone I’ve known, one day each week he would come home and get down on his knees again to give the kitchen floor a complete scrubbing.
This past week marked my father’s 85th birthday. Not a day goes by that I don’t think about him in some way. And the memory of how he tangibly loved my mother sits at the top of those thoughts. I will be forever grateful for his example.
Todd Rivetti 