There is hunger for ordinary bread, and there is hunger for love, for kindness, for thoughtfulness and this is the great poverty that makes people suffer so much.

*Mother Teresa

A radio commentator was talking about her vacation at a gorgeous seaside town in Mexico. One afternoon she saw an elderly couple walking hand-in-hand along the beach. She could see they clearly loved each other much. Later that day the commentator saw the couple at dinner. She apologetically introduced herself and asked for the secret of their strong show of intimacy. The woman, amused, said, "Our secret is that my husband has always been a bit hard of hearing! You see, we were married during the Depression. Both of us worked two, sometimes three, jobs just to make ends meet. One day I came home so exhausted, I said to my husband, 'I'm so tired, my teeth hurt!' Well, he took me by the hand, sat me down, took off my shoes, and lovingly rubbed my feet!" She continued, "I think you understand the mix-up! But from that day on, this became our little ritual. At the end of each day, my husband has always lovingly rubbed my feet. With this simple act, he shows me daily how much he loves me and, in turn, I remember how much I love him. And no matter what else is going on in our lives, or in the world, we always remember how easy it is to love each other."

Intimacy, as this story shows, is nurtured by action and often by small rituals affirming affection and tender-heartedness. Such small actions and rituals, ordinary and not called religious, may serve to connect us more with others than apparently grander expressions of love. Such small acts in a true sense, whether religious or not, are Prayer. When I touch with Kindness another person, that touch itself is a silent, though expressed, Prayer.