I was wrapping up my admin work when a colleague asked me to play with these “stress balls.” We stood a few feet apart, throwing them at each other and playing catch.
Note: We made sure not to disturb anyone. We started our three-minute game when the workday was almost over.
In the middle of our game, he threw his ball toward the ground, making it bounce as high as it could. I mimicked him, expecting the same result, but I was surprised when mine simply hit the floor and stayed there.
“What’s wrong with this ball? Why didn’t it bounce?” I blurted out.
Well, it is a so-called stress ball — meant to relieve tension through squeezing. Jumping up and down is not in its job description.
A few minutes later, I turned quiet as my creative self began to whisper a question:
Isn’t love made to bounce?
It could rebound back to you,
or into the hands of someone else.
But if it stays out of motion,
what’s the point?
And then I realized —
Not all forms of love are meant to be returned.
Some love is designed differently.
Some love absorbs, softens, and carries weight without ever springing back.
Like the stress ball, it serves its purpose in one direction.
It releases pressure. It eases tension. It gives comfort.
Even if it never bounces.
And maybe that, too, is love.
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