A farmer's wife once spent the day cooking to surprise her husband with his favorite meal. With her friend's help, she scrubbed the kitchen till it shined and donned a new dress. Candlelight flickered from tall tapers on the table.
Her husband tramped in, weary from a hard day in the fields. Large clumps of mud fell from his boots onto the freshly mopped floor as he crossed to the sink before removing the boots.
Ready to leave, the friend turned to the wife and whispered in disgust, "Ugh! Look at all that mud!"
The wife smiled. "Yes, his boots bring the mud in, but they bring him in, too."

--Cindy Sigler Dagnan