What can you give to someone who’s dying?
Kousei, who’s still merely a boy, doesn’t know what he can give to Kaori – but he knows he needs to give her something. Sometimes, he brings her a treat; on a grander scale, he delivered her hope in the form of a song in the last episode. And yet, in episode 19 of Your Lie in April (Shigatsu wa Kimi no Uso), he still wonders what he’s able to do for Kaori – in fact, Kousei doubts he’s done anything for her.
And Kousei’s father gives an interesting response to Kousei – he reaffirms what the boy feels, that he hasn’t done anything at all. But then he quickly follows up by saying, “All you did was show devotion.”
Devotion – what a powerful and weak thing. It can be given by the smallest of children – perhaps presented best by them. It can be given freely. But it’s not quantifiable. Sometimes it’s not even wanted.
But for Kaori, it is wanted. And it is meaningful.
When we experience grace, as Kousei did, we’re by definition in a situation where we have nothing of value to give. That’s what makes grace so grand – the lowest of the low is brought high simply out of love.
And when we respond to God’s grace, we might feel pathetic – what can the little one give to the almighty God of the universe who gave his very life for us? It’s laughable how little we have to give.
But we do have something of value – we have devotion.
And like a parent who accepts a child’s gift, even though it be bits and pieces of nothing, God accepts our devotion, as tiny and insignificant as it may be, because when we devote ourselves to God, we give him the most important piece of us, the one he wants most: our hearts.
And any parent will tell you that – there’s nothing better that a child can give.
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This show is a truly wonderful thing and your observations on it give it even more poignance – thank you for sharing these thoughts.
Thank you, sir!