Fond Memories Will Last A Lifetime Pro-Guests They Provide A Chance To Show Love For People, Warts And All

Who said house guests are a pain?

I love ‘em.

Guess I’d have to, because last year, more than 4,000 students cooked in, walked through and worshiped in my house. Actually, it’s their house - Campus House at Gonzaga University, dedicated to hospitality and Christian love.

Open daily to the university community, the house is a “home away from home” for students sick of dorm life. The two-bedroom house serves as a kitchen, chapel, social hall, seminar room, party area and Notre Dame football fan club.

So, what’s all the fuss about house guests?

They come; they go. We pretend that gourmet meals and white-glove cleaning are our lifelong talents. And for a short time, our “wreck-room” resembles the pages of Better Homes and Gardens.

Sure, students have slapped starchy strands of spaghetti onto the walls and left muddy footprints in the shag carpet. I’ve washed stacks of dirty dishes, and the bathroom floor has been left sopping wet. But who really cares? There’s always comfort in knowing that their stay, albeit glorious, also is temporary. It takes only a few minutes to clean up after the beloved folks.

And the memories they leave last a lifetime: an ice-cream war after a game of TriOminoes, surprise birthday parties, two brothers crying in the den after watching “Shawshank Redemption.” Or a mother’s pride as she smiles through tears and watches her son take the oath of office to become an Army officer. It all has happened under this gabled roof.

What makes me love the madness of 4,000 students romping through my front door? The secret is: Nothing can “make me.” The ability to love deeply requires that we are loved deeply.

I learned the lessons of hospitality from those who cared for me. They took me in even when it wasn’t convenient. Even when I was muddy. They encouraged me when I was deep in despair.

When we consider the value of loving another, we cannot ignore the priority of doing so.

Here’s an invitation to love. Have a house guest. Or have 4,000. And forget the little things. Look for the memories that will last a lifetime.

, DataTimes MEMO: For opposing view, see headline: Three days can seem like a lifetime

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