Love Is All Around

I was watching an older film called Love Actually and a quote stuck with me – “If you look for it, I’ve got a sneaky feeling you’ll find that love actually is all around.” I began to think about whether this was actually true. The movie inferred that love did not have to be pointed directly at us for us to experience it.

I experienced something very positive in a trip to Sheffield, England in 2015.  I noticed that in most conversations with family and strangers alike, sentences ended in the words of endearment such as “love” or “dear” or “sweetheart” or “darling”.  I found that the simple and regular use of these terms of endearment completely and positively changed my opinion of the interaction and my subsequent response. 

We could benefit from being a casual observer of love. If we can become aware of the acts of love happening all around us, we could actually become more loving ourselves. What do you think? Is there some merit to this thought?

Some ways that love is expressed around you are through expressions of affection, gratitude, generosity, kindness, forgiveness. Make a habit of smiling when you recognize love. Love can be a lifelong experience involving everything around you. At a basic level and with utmost respect and recognition of humanity, love is not just reserved for our children, spouses, family, and friends. Once we learn to recognize the signs and expressions of love all around us, we can move from being a casual observer to being a participant.

It is the ultimate form of love to believe in others’ potential, celebrate their successes, be their advocates and to treat them with kindness. We can only consistently do this if we deliberately remove our anxieties, resentments and stresses so we do not consciously or unconsciously pass them on to others. We must also remove the preconception that everyone must change themselves to come into alignment with our personal preferences. Why do we have to look at people with the idea that they need to change SOMETHING or the sense that they need to agree with us on everything? Will you be personally affected if most people change nothing at all around you or would both parties be happier in the presence of genuine acceptance?
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How can you authentically illuminate others? Well, you must truly believe that your encounters with others are love or a call for love. If you look for it, you’ll find that love is all around. When you recognize it, you become connected to it. Let love be your connection to others.