Ringing out loudy a bright acoustic guitar fills the classroom of fourth graders with tones emanating from three chords and a voice shouting “Tear Down the Walls, Tear Down the Walls.” Sitting on the wooden desktop with her long flowing straight black hair parted in the middle is our hippie music teacher. With all her heart, passionately she plays a defiant and rebellious early 70’s anti establishment folk song.
It is pre bicentennial, probably 1974 or 1975. Close to 40 years later I recall Miss Hilderbrandt’s effort to give us youngsters a musical education.

Today I want to tear down the walls. The stone walls, the brick walls my lovely friend put up.
On my journey I meet a precious woman. We spend much time together, in her early 50’s she is widowed two times over.

Several men want her. She is a true Midwesterner, a farm girl from Iowa or somewhere where they grow a lot of corn a few states north of Dallas.

Her heart is bigger than the Tappanzee Bridge fully stretched across the freshwater section of the Hudson River. I am giving this real life person the fictious name of Sarah.

Most recently Sarah is being pursued by a silver haired older gentleman that knows exactly what he wants out of life. He meets Sara, THUNDERCRACK!!! Lightening strikes, eyes open real wide, mostly on his end because Sarah’s guard is up. She quickly closes the curtains and lets the storm pass by although a connection just took root.

Why does Sarah have this concrete wall that no man can penetrate? Answer: It is her defense mechanism to keep her from getting hurt.

Having lost two wonderful and loving husbands whom both passed on prematurely, Sara is afraid of what if?

What if I fall in love? What if I get married a third time? What if he predeceases me? Can I go through the pain a third time?

The new man on the horizon looking to enter Sarah’s life I will call Ted. I changed his name to protect the guilty. Ted wants to pursue Sarah and travel the world with her, practice his culinary skills on her, and take long motorcycle rides with her into the descending sunset. In short, he wants to treat her like the Queen that she is.

Me being bald like Dr. Phil, playing therapist and wanting to help I offer my two cents. I learn on my journey that putting up walls only cheats yourself out of love and I question her whether or not it makes sense to miss out on a great time with someone that makes you laugh and wants to spoon you for the rest of your life?

The price of a broken heart is the best value on the shelf I tender. If your heart breaks it means you experienced something special, your heart was molded with your partner’s heart and stiched together.

Of course when two tethered hearts tear apart through death, separation, or divorce there will be deep cutting pain that causes aches all over your whole body with a period of sadness.

You only feel those aches because you loved someone deeply and on a very intimate level. This type of love can not be bought, traded, or sold. It only comes free and it is better than any material thing you can own.

If pain is the price for all the free time you shared love, made memories, and walked through life together holding each others hands regardless of the length of time it lasted, it is a steal. Simply the best bargain you will ever find.

This is a clear cut case. The good outweighs the bad. Let that wall down, invite people in. Take a risk, get hurt. I promise you it is worth it.

I see how wide the smile is on Sarah’s face when I mention Ted’s name and I begin to think persuasion is not very difficult when it comes to romance that can bloom into a lifelong friendship where mutual care for each other is one of the most glorious things on Earth. God built us this way for our enjoyment and fulfillment.

Do you have a wall up? Are you short changing yourself to avoid heartache? Are you preserving yourself at the expense of God’s most precious gift?

Let it down, live large. Take a risk. Love today, love tomorrow. Love forever! Tear down the walls, tear them down now!