Sometimes it’s better to put love into hugs than to put it into words.  ~Author Unknown

Josh was born a cuddler. He loved to snuggle tight against me and sleep, the intense baby smell would fill my nostrils and my heart would sore at the bliss of holding this amazing, loving child.  14.8 years later, he still loves to hug me…he is a “mama’s boy” – not in that he is a small wimpy pushover child (he towers over my 5’9 frame) but in that he absolutely and totally LOVES his mother and will do anything for me, always wanting to take care of me…often to the point that I have to tell him to relax and just be a kid!   

One of the funniest moments with Josh was after watching the movie the “Blind Side” he came up to me, a few days later and demanded a “proper hug”  — to which I burst out in laughter as this amused me… it has been nothing less than a proper hug from this point forward.

Now, Abbie is NOT a hugger by nature. She was the “please lay me in my bed and back away slowly” child when she was small, but now, in her awkward tween years, she wants to be tucked in every night but more than that she loves to be hugged…now, even in front of her friends she will lean against me to be wrapped up in my arms. This makes me hope that maybe I am not yet the enemy or “uncool” in her eyes and, well, I am more than willing to comply with her requests until she no longer seeks my arms out.

I love a good hug. LOVE it…the wrapped up in your arms-loving-tight-sweet hug…there is nothing in the world that beats it. There are times I CRAVE a hug… needing one so very badly that I simply cannot stand it. Other times I want to hold tight to someone and be the hugger (equal opportunity hugger that I am)… there is just something to be said about that shared moment.  Whether it is lovers that have been long separated, a mother and child hugging to say goodbye… grandparents embracing in remembrance of yesteryear or friends saying hello over lunch…a hug is just something special.  Good hugs, real ones, are hard to come by, and sought after by many…the art of hugging gets lost in the hustle and bustle of  a fast pace life. No one has time to just cuddle into someones arms and be hugged.

A hug can calm anger, try fighting when you are cuddled up in each other’s arms.  A hug can remind you of how quickly days turn to years and make you wish for the sleepless nights of infancy only to hold your baby once more.   Hugs dry tears that accompany skinned knees and broken hearts, they whisper I love you, I like you, I need you, I miss you, I want you, I’m sorry, and so much more.  They melt the coldest heart, and make grown men weak in the knees… Hugs make your insides get all squishy and remind you of innocence and love.

I leave you with this thought:

“Hugging has no unpleasant side effects and is all natural.  There are no batteries to replace; it’s inflation-proof and non-fattening with no monthly payments.  It’s non-taxable, non-polluting, and is, of course, fully refundable.”  ~Author Unknown

So, go on, get out there and hug and be hugged—- till your insides feel all squishy…..

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