On cold, winter nights when I was a boy my Mom would often let me help her make popcorn to eat while we watched television. Mom made it the old fashioned way too. She would grab a cast iron skillet and light the stove beneath it. Then she would pour in a splash of oil and add a dollop of butter. Next she would sprinkle in a big handful of kernels from the popcorn bag. Together we would wait, listening to the oil sizzle until we heard the first kernels popping. Then we would grab the skillet and lid and shake them over the fire to keep the popcorn from burning. Shake, shake, shake and pop, pop, pop until the skillet was full to overflowing. Finally, Mom would pour it all into a huge bowl and shake salt all over it.

After this we would all sit down in the living room, Dad in his recliner, Nana in her chair by the stove, and me, Mom, and my brothers on the couch. There was always enough popcorn for everyone and Mom even let me crunch on the kernels that didn’t quite finish popping.

The funny thing is I can’t really remember a single one of the programs that we watched on TV on those nights. They are all just a blur to me. What I can remember clearly, however, is the smell of the popcorn, the warmth of the bowl on my lap, the delicious taste of it, and most of all the joy I felt with Mom cuddled up next to me. I felt so loved, so safe, and so happy. There with my family all seemed right with the world. We didn’t have a huge home, a lot of money, or even fancy snacks from the store but we had Love and that was all we needed.

In the end I think it is those little, shared moments of Love that give life meaning. They are God’s gift to us. They are our gift to each other. They are the only things we will take with us when we leave this world. Cherish every one of them. Fill your life with them. Because every time you do, you create a little bit of Heaven right here on Earth.