I love children’s picture books. They offer beautifully illustrated lessons for children and a picture window for adults to see the world through new eyes. One of my favorites, which I read over and over to my children when they were young, is I Love You the Purplest by Barbara Joosse.
It is the tender story of a young mother and her two sons, Max and Julian. After a day of adventures at their cabin in the woods, she tucks them into bed, and each boy asks her who she loves best. She answers with wisdom and tenderness, celebrating each boy’s gifts:
“Why Max, I love you the reddest: like the color of the campfire, the swirl of a magic cape or the thunder of a shout.
And, Julian, I love you the bluest: like the color of a dragonfly, the mist of a mountain or the hush of a whisper.”
When the boys are finally asleep, their mama closes her eyes and dreams of her precious children that she loves the purplest.
That beautiful imagery of red, blue, and purple resonates deeply with me. Some of us are naturally drawn toward blue — embracing the quiet gifts of contemplation, prayer, and listening. Others lean toward red — embracing the active gifts of serving, leading, and doing. Both are beautiful. Both are needed.
We live in a time when red and blue often feel less like colors in a children’s book and more like symbols of opposing teams. We choose sides, dig in our heels, and defend our beliefs — all too often with bitterness and anger toward the “other side.” Our current reality makes me wonder if there might be wisdom in a simple children’s book for just such a time as this.
The mother in the story does not ask Max to become more blue or Julian to become more red. She delights in the gifts each brings. She recognizes that both belong, both matter, and both are deeply loved. Purple, after all, is not the absence of red or blue. It is what happens when they come together. Perhaps we might learn to celebrate not only our red and blue convictions and ideals, but also the sacred purple space where we can come together to act justly, love mercy, and walk humbly with our God (Micah 6:8).
The truth might be that there is a little blue and a little red in each of us. We are each invited to nurture our own unique shade of contempl-active purple, where contemplation deepens action and action flows from contemplation. Like the mother in the story, God delights in who we are and who we are becoming and loves us all the purplest. Thanks be to God!
Sharon Seyfarth Garner is a writer, pastor, and the founding director of Belly of the Whale Spiritual Direction & Retreat Ministries. She is the author of several books, including Praying with Mandalas: A Colorful Contemplative Practice and her latest release, Praying with Jonah: Practices for Imperfect Pilgrims.
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