I was going through my previous posts and came across something that I had written about two years ago on the day before mine and the blog’s birthday. It was inspired from the deeply touching text by Charlie Chaplin, called “As I began to love myself”. The text is a true masterpiece and a must read, one of those pieces that you read with new eyes every time. It that it also resonated a lot with my earlier reflections on Love.
While reading what I`ve written felt like listening to a very close friend:
“I hope that reading it will inspire you to go on a self-discovery trip and test whether his findings are valid for you. Because life is not only about getting inspired by others, but most importantly-about discovering your own truth and staying authentic. And this is what this blog is about.”
This is something that I truly believe in. And I think it indeed highlights the essence of the blog. And to my surprise, I somehow felt inspired by my own words. And all the troubles of the day faded away. True magic.
Photography is a distinctive type of art that captures not only moments, but also the underlying feelings of the photographer. It is a unique portal to memories and experiences and has the power to covey messages much subtler that what is visible for the eye. It is also something that all of us can master with practice and inspiration.
Take the photo of today as an example. What is visible are the colors, composition and peculiar fact of having the moon and sun on the same picture. But what it actually depicts is the feeling of peace, but also anticipation for an unforgettable experience which is actually just beginning to unfold with the sun embracing the moon.
We very often get so engrossed in the spur of the moment that we don`t feel like bothering to take pictures. But putting the extra effort pays off when you look back and recall the feeling associated with the moments captured. It reminds us of the richness of our lives which undoubtedly lies not in our material possessions, but in our experiences.
It`s not a secret that I am not a fan of St. Valentine’s day mainly because of the massive commercial hype around it. All the hearts, glitter, huge amounts of fluffy gifts with ambiguous purpose are quite a turn off for me. Additionally, the pressure to display your love and affection (for example by having dinner together with 100 other couples) also feels unnatural and somehow unauthentic. Furthermore, I think the whole “celebration” is in some way discriminatory and cruel to all single people who are left without a reason to celebrate.
On the other hand, it is a beautiful concept to have a day when you can pay tribute to Love and to reflect what it means to you. Because even though the critics of the day claim that we should express our love daily (which I actually fully agree with) and without occasion the reality is that it doesn`t always work and having an occasion to be reminded of the meaning and importance of Love is actually a pretty good idea.
So what is Love? There have been many different approaches towards defining Love, but I think that it is important for everyone to formulate their personal definition. For me, it starts from truly loving and respecting yourself (we all need to start from somewhere 😉 ) and then expanding it to others. It manifests through acceptance rather than desire to change the other person as well as care for the well being of the person above and beyond our personal well being. And very importantly – it is not a noun, but a verb; something that requires dedication and attention.
Love is also a driving force for good and creativity and helps us to become improved versions of ourselves. And as the brilliant Khalil Gibran puts it in his chapter on Love in his masterpiece “The Prophet”:
“Love has no other desire but to fulfill itself.
But if you love and must needs have desires, let these be your desires:
To melt and be like a running brook that sings its melody to the night.
To know the pain of too much tenderness.
To be wounded by your own understanding of love;
And to bleed willingly and joyfully.”
For those of you who want to see his whole message, have a look at the video:
In the spirit of yesterday’s inspiration, let`s dive deeper into the week with a vibe of self-confidence and strength. Today’s message in the Brahma Kumaris calendar fully reflects this- let’s do it!
Today I spent most of the day on my own, doing a photography course. To my surprise, I didn’t feel bored, lonely or missing something. On the contrary- I felt energized to be doing something that feels meaningful and puts me in a certain flow.
As usual, in the course of the day I received a “message” that reinforced that. I was reading an interview with the psychologist Mikhail Litvak and something that he said and really resonated with my experience today is:
“The ability to appreciate spending time on your own is a sign of spiritual maturation and growth. All our greatest accomplishments happened when we were alone.”
Sometimes we don`t realize it, but we actually achieve the most important things in our lives on our own. Support, team work and collaboration are very important, but the moment of creation, the idea, the drive come from our own individual source to which we usually connect when we are alone. This source gives us the power to dream, envision and create. And most importantly- the power to act in a unique way. We should not forget how powerful we are and how important and nourishing are the moments that we spend on our own, connecting to ourselves.
I recently watched a super insightful video about addiction adapted from Johann Hari’s book ‘Chasing The Scream: The First and Last Days of the War on Drugs’. It is not only related to addiction to drugs, but also the “modern” addictions such as the ones to social media, electronic devices, Netflix, etc. from which all of us suffer at varying degrees often without realizing it.
The video reveals the most effective remedies to addictions – love and connection. It also discusses how the overuse of phones and other electronic devices is linked to feeling of loneliness and unwillingness to connect. I am not going to share more, as I really recommend watching it for yourselves.
I believe that it is essential for the well – being of ours and that of our loved ones to stay connected, to be there for each other, and to simply listen.
How many times have you seen others having dinners with family and friends, where at one point most of the people are interacting much more with their phones rather than with each other? And how often have you been in that situation? Shall we break the circle?
It was written in a calm period of my life, at a time when I was very close to nature, for future times when I would need inspiration.
It was a very fascinating and uplifting experience to read something written by myself and addressed to myself. And it also reminded me how important it is to leave traces. Like throwing a stone in the water and seeing the ripples come back to you one day 😉
I found the palm on the picture about 4 years ago in the garbage area of my apartment building. It had one tiny leaf and a dry branch sticking from its base. At first sight it wasn`t clear whether it is going to survive; the green tints of the tiny leaf were the only indication that it might stay alive and grow.
So I decided to give it a try, took it at home, replanted it and watered it diligently. In the course of the next few months nothing changed. I moved the pot to a different spot. Still nothing. I then decided to examine the leaves. The small one was still green, but not growing. And the dry branch was also there. I gave it a closer look and noticed that there was a top layer that could be peeled off. I did that –a green leaf appeared underneath! I later discovered that this palm formed leaves that initially look like branches and later on unfold into leaf-like forms. It seemed that because of the initial drought the growing leaf had formed a hard top layer which somehow blocked the development of the plant.
Ever since the palm has been growing at a constant pace. Soon it will be big enough to sit underneath and turn it into my special meditation place! Every time that I look at it is a beautiful reminder of the transforming power of love, care and patience. But also of determination and creativity. And a reminder to apply these qualities in other aspects of my life and save more palms 😉
Yesterday`s portion of inspiration can be found here.
Let’s dive deeper into this week with an attitude of openness’s to admit what we don’t know. This is the best way to actually learn it. Remember- there are no stupid questions 😉
