It's the same with parenting. We become parents for the first time on the day we adopt or give birth to a child. But we become parents again many, many times (daily) after that. We learn more about being parents every time our child:

• Is sick and we just sit with him or her, finding out that patience is the only cure.

• Grows into a new stage and we have to catch up.

• Asks a hard, honest question about life — and we know they are listening and watching very hard for our answer.

When we get married, we state our marriage vows. We repeat the words we find in our hymnal or write our vows and share them at the wedding. But what about parent vows? Where can we find those? In the Gospel of John. As Jesus leaves his beloved ones to go to his death and resurrection, he passes on to them the vow that he lived and they must live by: Love one another. "I give you a new commandment, that you love one another. Just as I have loved you, you also should love one another" (John 13:34).

Who will witness our parent vows? There's no ceremony for parenthood attended by family and friends. But our children will hear our vows every time we tell them, "God loves us" or "Let's pray." Our children will hear that our love for them comes from beyond us, from a God we so dearly want them to know. Day by day, our children will witness the love that is not just our promise to them, but God's promise to us.

God witnesses our parent vows. The love we find for our children began with God's love for us, and that love returns to God in prayer.

Please, God, give me the strength to take a deep breath instead of screaming. Please, God, help me to slow down and ask my child about their day. Please, God, help me to pray with my child more often. Thank you, God. I never knew I could love someone so deeply. Amen.

Love one, love another. We love one God who binds us to another, again and again and again.