Thursday, February 3, 2011

Abstractions

"I'm tired of living in a world that says people only come together when faced with catastrophe." -Shane Koyczan

What would the world be like if we loved just because we can? Not because we expect anything back, not because the other deserves it, or out rightly needs it. What if we lived to love, because we loved to love, and because we were in love with loving other's ability to love and receive love just for the sake...of loving love?

Hear me out before you decide to close this blog and take a seizure medication. What if we loved attempts and failures in real life? In a movie, the underdog is the star...we cry for them, laugh with them, yell from our couches "YOU CAN DO IT FORREST!" What do we say to the single mom who hands us our burger at McDonalds? Do we say anything to her? We love the kid who tries to ride a bike, help them up when they fall. What do we say to the drug addict who falls back into his lifestyle? Do we help them up? Even if you can see, and love, the underdogs around you...what about yourself? What do you say to yourself when you gain five pounds, can't get past 'Smoke on the Water' in guitar lessons, or can't seem to pass that one class, or get that promotion you've been in line for? What if we loved ourselves with the patience that comes when we take away expectations? Live to love...out of love flourishes confidence and peace. And with unconditional love usually comes the desire to become better, to be worthy of that love; love ignites passion. If we lived in a world driven by love, intentional love that is based off of specific choices rather than emotion, the emotions that will grow would grow us.

Before you assume I'm a hippie who loves everything, I don't. I'm a pessimist who doesn't trust, doesn't feel worthy of love, and doesn't like to feel vulnerable, open, or forgiving. I'm hard on myself; I judge others quickly. This whole blog was birthed out of a realization that I'm walking through my world with blinders on, filtering beauty through my hardened, critical, logical worldview. I'm tired of that. I woke up a few days ago and it occurred to me that I need to start focusing on intentional love. So here I am, with this blog being one way to focus my thoughts each day on things around me that I adore. What I'm saying is that I know from experience that it's not an easy proposition, but I believe it is a necessary one, at least for my own life. By the way, have you ever noticed how the most difficult things are usually the best for us long term?

Today I'm choosing to love. I will love you without expectations. I will love you even if you have expectations on me (ever noticed how hard that is to do?). I will love myself even when I fail, and I will continue to love the challenge of loving those who are sometimes just not so lovable. Because, I'm starting to realize, a life without love is a failure in itself.


If the sun, situated specifically to provide life-giving light, was ever absent, darkness and death would take over; growth would stop. What if we are situated specifically to love, and that love is largely absent? I think we would be exactly where we are, with emotional darkness and death taking over...if we want to grow, we need to love.

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