Always Choose Love
Why responding with love allows us to connect deeper with our inner self
A funny thing happened last week.
I was at a busy buffet dinner with a friend and we had gotten up to get our second helping. As I returned back to my table, I was surprised to see my chair completely missing. After looking around, I realized that one of the nearby families had taken my seat without asking.
Yes, I was annoyed.
Yes, I was extremely hungry.
Yes, I could have lashed out at the family about politeness and respect.
But after taking a moment to reflect, I realized that I did not have all of the contexts of the situation. Perhaps someone took it for them. Perhaps they needed it right away. Perhaps they could benefit from it more than me.
At that moment, I approached the situation with love for the family. I simply smiled, looked around for another chair, and resumed my dinner.
When life presents us with problems and situations, visceral emotions arise. These feelings are shaped by our past experiences of loss and grief. To protect ourselves, we build a suit of armor equipt with anger, hatred, jealousy, and greed.
Looking back at decisions I’ve made in the past coming from a place outside of love (reacting with my suit of armor), I have always ended up making regretful decisions. I would end up hurting others. At any given moment, we can react with our words, actions, and thoughts. I was choosing to douse the flames with more fire.
On the flipside, whenever I have chosen to react to a situation with love, I have never regretted my actions and outcomes. In fact, I have been pleasantly surprised each time. By choosing love, we disarm the suit of armors around us and provide an opportunity for our core hearts to connect.
The next time you are faced with a challenging situation, take a step back. Pause and breathe. Release frustrations, anxiety, or any other emotions that pull you away from love. Open up your suit of armor and reveal your innermost compassion and love.
It might just make somebody’s day a little bit better.
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Have a fabulous day!
Metta (loving-kindness),
Steven
