Wellspring of the Heart
Various ponderings on Love...
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Dear ones,
If you are a new subscriber, a special WELCOME! Today’s post is on LOVE! The wonders and challenges. What it is and what it isn’t. Knowing words can never be enough. From my heart to your heart, Love to you all!
What is Love?
That is a huge question, I am humbled by it. I ponder how many through the millenniums have tried to answer this. Probably every life that has lived! It is the biggest ongoing exploration of our existence. There is no one right answer! I would expect each response to be only a facet of the total jewel that is Love.
For me, Love is not something to solve. It cannot be figured out, packaged up and sold like some commodity. We all know many have tried! We see this everywhere right now in the consumeristic marketplaces of love. Capitalism at its worst, for Love is inherently free!
Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud. It does not dishonor others, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps no record of wrongs. Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth. It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres. (1 Corinthians 13:4-7)
I am comforted knowing that Love is deeply rooted in integrity and justice. Impartial and passionate in its implementation yet embracing and compassionate in its delivery. Making what once seemed impossible, possible.
Simply, Love loves! There is no “other” outside of it, for Love is fully and completely embedded into the physicality of life. Love as the ultimate truth of what we are as humans, it is our highest expression. We live inside of Love, as a web of inclusive interconnection. The purpose of “other” is for the wondrous experience of giving and receiving it.
Shame and Love
There are many elements that can erode away at our intimacy with ourselves, each other and with life. Most of it conditioned or trained into us through our families, society, culture, religion, etc. For me it was shame.
When a child is told they are too much or not enough, the message is; it is not okay to be you. I received such edicts. I was definitely taken care of physically but brought up in a home of emotional dysfunction. There was love, but it was both hidden and conditional. And as a female born into a patriarchal system, I have had numerous experiences of being devalued and marginalized. Culturized into the fear of persecution, so not to question male dominance.
The lesson I received was that I was fundamentally flawed. I learned to turn away and ignore my natural traits or attempt to fix them. Like hiding my sensitivities to life and taming down my inner wildness and longing for true justice. In such ways, I developed people-pleasing tendencies, learned to be a chameleon.
I didn’t trust love. While at the same time I yearned for it with such ardor. To feel connected, in coherence with another, or others or simply…myself. That passion eventually brought me into deep self-reflection and inner work. That longing is Love. Supporting me in coming home to the innocence and fiery power of it.
Guidance…
Over the years Love has taught and transformed me in amazing ways! Still does, for every day is an unfurling expression of it as an ongoing journey. Here are some insights I have received along the way:
The shaming voices in my mind may never stop. However, I can choose not to identify with them.
It is not about fixing, rejecting or getting rid of the wounds. Love is inclusive, bringing together what has been torn apart. Even the wounds have grace in them.
Being empathic, it is important to have healthy boundaries.
Navigating life through the heart requires honoring the sacred voice within, heeding its wisdom. Sensing, intuiting, feeling into what the physical senses do not detect.
Recently I did a tarot/oracle/rune reading. A further contemplation around what gets in my way of having an open heart and resting into love. Several counsels were offered… I hope they in some way help you as well…
Empty yourself into love and let it empty into you. Like an estuary, where a body of water meets the ocean, there is a pouring into. Be the estuary.
Liberation of the heart is made possible through the willingness to be with life; however, it is showing up. Opening to the tenderness and rawness of the moment. The temptation may be to react from cultural, social and familial conditioning. Stay with the moment, for this allows empathy, intuitive knowing and compassion to come forward.
Be gentle with yourself. Releasing patterns can feel like an upheaval and loss. The ground is shifting, vulnerability and grief is a natural response. Remember, Love has you in every moment.
Wellspring of the Heart
The heart calls. In response… wispy clouds drift across mountain tops, sparrows dart from twig to twig, streams kiss each rock and reed, dragonflies’ whirl in delight. The heart calls. In response… minuscule mycelial fibers and threads weave existence together in concert. Mutual unspoken interdependences dance within a cherished language not of words but of instinctual caring. The heart calls. In response… only what is needed is taken, for all life is honored even in death. Misfortunes and tragedies do break the heart, where tears fall through cracks left behind, forging vulnerabilities of permeable intimacy. Deep within my heart a recognition of a song we are all chanting together in call and response. Life touching life, in call and response, as a wellspring of pure Love.
Questions for you…
What is your heart wanting to tell you right now? Are you listening?
What does Love mean to you?
In what ways do you turn from love? What brings you back?
Would love to know your thoughts and feelings. Let’s have a conversation…
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Well Julie, I started a post on shame this week. The synchronicity tells me that this is a collective wound that we are healing. I have a very similar pattern to you in that I grew up in a dysfunctional house, so I was never encouraged how to express emotions or love. It's what I've spent the last few years unraveling and continue to do so. I do so see why we have been connected and am grateful for your wisdom. 🙏
Julie, beautiful words from a wise woman. I like believe that those wounded take those wounds and live out the wounded healer archetype. I see that healing light emanating from your words.