"A man is not idle because he is absorbed in thought. There is visible labor and invisible labor” -Victor Hugo

It’s Labor Day again. I find myself thinking of the people I’ve shared work with all these years and about the work we’ve done. I’m thinking about work and how it has defined so much of my life. This will be the last Labor Day while I am working full time and I’m grateful to be looking forward to retirement. I’m also grateful looking back on my life as a man who has worked.

I have a deep sense of the value of work. If I had not had to work for my living, I imagine I would have found some other work because of my need for purpose. Our work has real, lasting, value for each other, for our families, and for ourselves. We each bring special talents, knowledge, abilities, and personal characteristics to our work. Each of us represents a unique constellation of these and something would be missing from the work, and the lives we share, if any one of us were not part of this shared effort.

If it weren’t for the work of my colleagues, the work I do would not be possible and I could not achieve meaningful results. If it weren’t for the work of the farmers, the bakers, the teachers, the truck drivers, the doctors, the florists, the carpenters, the firefighters, the police, the artists, and on and on, the amazing richness of the lives we share would impossible, or greatly diminished. If it weren’t for the work of love done by mothers, fathers, siblings, spouses, grandparents, and friends, this amazing rich life would be bereft of, or diminished in, meaning and sweetness. Not just the skill and effort, but also the patience and compassion of all these who work to make life possible is essential.

I feel deep admiration for those who have worked beside me. Often I have needed their patience and compassion as I have struggled to bring my best to the work we share. Daily I have marveled at their creativity, commitment, and  humanity. Even in the hardest times, they have shown up each day and given the best they could bring to this work. Often it was in crisis that their abilities, and their humanity, shone brightest. I have been blessed to work with people of good character and true dedication. I’m grateful to believe that the vast majority of us who work share this blessing.

I have a special admiration beyond the power of my poor words to express for my loved ones. My family, and special friends, and for the work they have done, and do. My dear ones have worked to teach, to create art, and to heal. The have worked with flowers, with steel, and with the bits and bytes of IT. We include engineers, business people, and musicians. Their work as mothers, fathers, grandparents, and friends shines with love and devotion. These special ones have allowed me to be close to them. To see their best attributes and deepest challenges in the work of making our livings, and the much more important work of making the lives we share. They have shaped the man I have become with their love. They have supported me in my work and life, and allowed me to support them in theirs. These dear ones are beloved to me and I love them so.

This Labor Day, I think of all these labors of love that are the commonplace fabric of our daily lives, For each of us work has special value as it allows us to live with purpose. To make a difference. The work is often hard and tedious, and it can be thankless and distasteful. I’m thankful that work is also deeply satisfying, challenging to my mind and abilities, and that it has allowed us to provide our family with a good living.

I often hear advice from people that we should look for work that is aligned with our passion. Those who think more carefully about these questions will advise that we consider not only our passions but also our abilities. I’ve recently heard this confluence described as the “"intersection between passion and ability, desire and talent" and it is an exciting place to work. Outside our home, I’ve come closest to this in my work at SHARE, and have approached it at times in my work at the university. I’ve come closest of all to this place in my work as husband, father, and friend.

In my reflections about my own passion, ability, desire, and talent, it seems clear to me that these are greatest when I am able to work with love. I imagine, and hope, that love is significant in all our lives. For me it is essential. Working to gain greater awareness of the love I feel, to nurture a greater connection to my beloveds, and to foster more love in the world is my greatest passion. I certainly have the desire to do these things, and I believe I have some talent and ability as a man seeking to live in love and help others do the same. For me, as near as I can tell, working at this intersection would be working in love.

As I look back over nearly 60 years, I can see how my path brought me close to working in love a number of times. As a young boy, among the many things I wanted to grow up to be was a pastor. As a young man, I had opportunities to serve in a loving way among a community of other young people, spent significant time with a very special pastor at our church, and considered this possible calling again. I ultimately chose to study in another field then, when I changed my major at university, I chose to pursue a degree in psychology. I graduated with a B.S, and was planning to pursue a PhD and a career in clinical psychology, when money ran short. I found work in IT and it has been a good career for me. I learned that logic and programming come easy to me, that I find problem solving stimulating and satisfying, and that I have an ability to provide direction and leadership for others in this field. Some aspects of this work come closer to my “intersection” than others and I have tried to work with love by caring for my colleagues, and those who use the systems we create and maintain. I have found that one of the best ways I can bring love to bear in my work is always to seek to do what is right.

Now my career in IT is nearing a close. I may work part time in this field after retirement for a while but I will be actively pursuing new directions. I hope to think a lot about love in my retirement. I will continue to write songs and many of those will be love songs, I also hope to write one or more essay on my own thoughts and feelings about love. I’ve been working on ideas for these for a number of years, but love is so important to me that I can’t imagine writing them until I have time to do my very best work. I look forward to volunteer work that advances equity and equality for women, literacy, and other aspects of social justice. Most of all, I hope to live love in my actions. I do expect I will love retirement, and especially more time with my loved ones!

May this Labor Day day bring us, along with a rest from our labors, a new appreciation for work, and especially for the worker. Thank you all for the work you do.