Your value is inherent in the fact that you were born. No matter what you do or what you don’t do, you are worthy of love. That’s what we’re fighting for, standing for, aiming for, here at Joy-Based Living. I’d like us to take a moment to celebrate the love within you and within each of us, on this Valentine’s Day. What we focus on grows, so let’s focus it on LOVE, the kind of love that is given and shared without any agenda at all.
In the last post I shared my favorite non-conformist anthem: Pink Floyd’s THE WALL. I must admit, it’s so much fun to feel juiced up by the edginess and feistiness of Pink Floyd backed by children singing the chorus. They’re expressing the message of HELL NO! ENOUGH! But staying in that energy, in that vibration, in that intention, won’t lead to joy. It’s like salt in a meal. You don’t want too much or too little. “Just enough” is just right.
Then the article turns around and says, why not actively choose LOVE? LOVE is the greatest power in the UNIVERSE! Why not leap over the chasm into the land of HELL YES?
Why not? Because sometimes leaps can be scary.
One of my favorite people in the world felt really down for a few days because some of the people in her life were acting like jerks. She turned herself around by practicing gratitude, which she loves to do. Her practice was working but this had happened before and I wanted her to feel stronger.
So I took her practice a step further and told her that whenever she practices gratitude, she is MINISTERING to herself. She is practicing LOVE. I used the word MINISTER, even though she’s Jewish, because it offers a sense of AUTHORITY. I wanted her to see herself as powerful in her choice for gratitude.
The more powerful she feels, the better equipped she’ll be to grow her LOVING energy, her GRATITUDE, her JOY. Love without agenda says I’M WORTHY OF FEELING AMAZING. Love without agenda says HOW CAN I ALIGN WITH MY HEART MORE OFTEN, MORE POWERFULLY, MORE EASILY? Love without agenda has no expectation and is not a transaction. It is an offering.
So, on this Valentine’s Day… I invite you to build a bridge in your imagination. This bridge is made of bricks. And each brick is infused with love… all kinds of love:
- Love for yourself
- Love for people you know and like
- Love for people you know and don’t like
- Love for all of humanity
- Love for other sentient beings
- Love for rocks and trees and other earthly things
You are so worthy of love without any agenda at all. And maybe, in this day and age, we all need a reminder to offer “love without agenda” to ourselves first. When we do, we are stronger and we have more to offer to others. When we do, we are more open and available to receive it from others.
As much as I enjoy THE WALL, I love BRIDGES OF LOVE even more.
I wish you many bridges of love. I wish you so much joy.
Happy Valentine’s Day!
Love,
Debbie Happy Cohen aka HAPPY D! and REVEREND SASSY SHORTS!
Founder of Joy-Based Living
I want you to LOVE negotiating for JOY!
ps. to finish the story – at first this Jewish friend of mine argued with me about the word MINISTER. Then, the next day, I received this text message from her:
Great post, Debbie! Thank you! “Bridges of love”… I dig that phrase and see it actually as an invitation to take action: “WALK (or skip & run) on this bridge of love!” So, that’s how I’m envisioning myself at this moment… slowly, yet delightedly skipping on a bridge of love. Yay!
And Happy Valentine’s Day to you, too! 🙂
skipping down the road is a wonderful image… yay! Happy Valentines Day!
😉