Wednesday, February 12, 2020

Walk Together In Love

As those of you who have been following my posts since the beginning know, I have been on a mission to read a crazy amount of books as a personal challenge to myself.  I'm now in year three of reading at least 50 books a year.  At this point you might be wondering, what have you gotten out of this situation other than bragging rights?

Well, what have I gotten out of reading so much for the last couple of years?

That is an excellent question.

I believe this journey has taught me something that I think we all know already.  Or at least, should know already.  It's a lesson that is so elementary in nature that you're likely going to laugh or roll your eyes at me when I tell you about it.

Well, insert eye roll here, 'cause I'm about to lay it out for you.

What I have learned more than anything else, regardless of what book I have read, is that above all else, all you need is love.

Yes, you read me correctly.

And no, this is not a Beatles song.

It is actually a legitimate observation that I have made.  It honestly doesn't matter what I read, the underlying message of all the books, whether it is explicitly stated or if it is hidden in the subtext, is to make all decisions in your life with love and to act towards one another with love as your primary response.

Sound ridiculous?

Maybe.

But, just imagine - sorry Beatles, I'm not trying to rip off all of your songs here! - Imagine a world based on loving actions and thoughts.

Can you even imagine a world like this?

I can.

Just think about it with me for a moment or two...

Can you imagine coming face to face with the woman who murdered your brother and then respond to her with love rather than hate?

If not, just read The Huntress by Kate Quinn.

Can you see yourself loosing the love of your life to another man and then sealing your fate to never have a chance to get her back by anonymously paying for life saving medical treatment that will save her husband's life and ensure she gets her "happily ever after"?

If not, just read Dear John by Nicholas Sparks.

Can you picture turning your life's work into something that promotes love, kindness and understanding because you survived the Holocaust?

If not, just read Man's Search for Meaning by Viktor Frankl.

Can you imagine living in a neat and tidy home that brings you joy because it only contains items that you love?

If not, just read The Life-Changing Magic of Tidying Up: The Japanese Art of Decluttering and Organizing by Marie Condo.

Do you need more examples?  Then just start reading because love is exactly what I have discovered in the many books I have read during my personal reading challenge.

Maybe some of you are thinking, to hell with love - money is all you need and then you can afford to buy a life that you love and get whatever you want!  Well, considering the many pro-social experiments that have been done out there it is clear that money may make you feel more comfortable and ensure a certain standard of living, but only to a certain degree.  What money cannot do is make you happy.

Let go of money as the answer to your many woes, and imagine instead wealth measured by the love you have to give to others and to yourself.  Imagine how life changing that could be!

As we approach Valentines Day I'd like to challenge you to make love an every day thing, not a one day thing.

Can you try one of these things out?

- respond in a loving way to someone who has hurt you
- offer care and guidance to someone who has been disrespectful to you
- choose to forgive instead of laying blame
- look in the mirror and thank you body for the many things it accomplishes everyday regardless of how it looks

Don't just buy chocolates and flowers this Friday because real love is so much more than that.

Consider this:  if you paid others in love and kindness, rather than feed your own ego or spend only one day a year thinking about love and what it means, how quickly could you transform your world?

Even in one of my most recent reads, Nicholas Spark's A Walk to Remember we are reminded of what it means to respond in love when it could be so easy to react with fear, hatred, blame or sorrow.

I don't want to ruin A Walk to Remember for you in case you want to read it yourself, but when Landon grants Jamie her greatest wish we might ask ourselves, given the age of the characters, how realistic is this book anyways?  That being said, Landon's ability to help Jamie achieve her dream during the darkest time of her life was the most loving thing he could have done for her.  It gave her the opportunity to have "a walk to remember".

If there is anything I can get out of what I have read over the last few years it is most definitely that love trumps all else.  We walk through life too often harboring jealousy, regret, fear or even hate.

What a heavy load to carry for our many days on this earth.  Imagine instead we choose to shed these burdens of negativity. What a walk it would be if we all walked together in love.

It would indeed be a walk to remember.

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