I am reading Tuesdays with Morrie by Mitch Albom, and I am struck by how something so simple can feel so deep.

As is custom here on Big Bowl of Popcorn, I try to articulate my thoughts and initial feelings as I read through a book. And as I said yesterday, I did not read the back cover or a single headline before starting. I wanted to see with fresh eyes.

Today I want to talk about another statement from the book.

“Love is the only rational action.”

This was something Morrie said.

My first thought was, is this true? How is this true?

Love is one of those truths that seems to rise above everything else. You feel that it is right, but you cannot always explain why.

The grammar part of me broke it down.

Love is the subject.

Is, the linking verb.

The only rational action is what it is being equated to.

So out of all possible actions, love is the only one that always makes sense.

Put another way, love is the only action you can take that is always right.

Maybe it could be argued that love is not the only rational action. What about courage, justice, or temperance?

But those depend on something else being present.

Courage exists because fear exists.

Justice is needed when things are not equal.

Temperance is necessary when there has been a lack of restraint.

When those things are no more, those actions are no longer needed.

But love remains.

Love is good and necessary at all times.

And that tracks. Because we know that God is love. That the greatest of these is love. That love covers all.

So maybe Morrie is right.

Which leads me to this.

If love is the only rational action, is choosing not to love irrational?

And that would make sense when you think about Christ’s posture on earth. He called us to love one another as He and the Father are one.

Morrie does not seem like a very religious man. Spiritual, maybe. But not religious. And yet he takes us down a path that leads to God, to love. It seems as though this is the point behind every statement, every reason. Do it for love.

I want to end with some declaration here. Something that says I have absorbed Morrie’s words and now I am going to live differently. Detach from all material pursuits and focus on loving my neighbor. Give dignity to my fellow human by giving them my attention.

The truth is, I cannot say any of those things.

I have absorbed every word Mitch has written thus far. But it did not liberate me. It weighs on my heart like the most profound examination of my own consciousness.