Article May 22, 2000 Issue

Take another look

Have you noticed how lovable your neighbor is

By Janet Ivcich Hegarty

Suddenly the quiet of the afternoon was shattered. A group of high-school boys riding skateboards boisterously zoomed down the street. I had been working at my desk near an open window. Grumbling to myself, I wondered why they weren't in school and hoped they'd soon turn the corner and take their noise with them.

As abruptly as the noise had broken into my day, however, a photograph I had seen in the local paper a few days earlier arrested my attention. The photo was of a beautiful baby who had been abandoned by her mother. The baby girl had been discovered hidden in a dumpster behind a hospital. Over one hundred families, who had seen television coverage of the incident, had requested to adopt her. When I recalled the photo, it was easy to understand why. Her sweet face had moved my heart, and evidently the hearts of many others, to overflow with love.

What a contrast between my loveless reaction to the skateboarding boys and the abundance of love I had felt in response to the baby's photo! Wouldn't it be great to feel that same outpouring of affection when we see or think about anyone?

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