The Art of Love

It's here, what some consider the big LOVE day. I wish I could say I do but the truth is I believe LOVE is all around all the time and while one day to celebrate it is a lovely thing so is recognizing it, embracing, and accepting it year round. We are all worthy of it and if we open our eyes and take a good look around we'll find that LOVE as cheesy as it may sound, truly is all around and can be found in many forms.

Today I wish I was going to see Zoey so I could tell her how much I love her. Although I am certain I show her all the time as best as I can. She is a twelve year old who is still figuring out her way through life and love thinking that it is so important to have a boyfriend. I see her struggle through this right now and the pressure of being an almost teenager with peers who succumb to the same pressures. I am well aware that all I can do is hold her hand through it and lead by example so I don't take from her journey and its lessons. Easier said than done but I know its best to allow her to be where she is in life. I trust we are both being love to eachother and filling a part of our life's that needed to be filled with a certain kind of love and a special bond. Most of all I am so grateful for the biggest lesson she has taught me. Through our bond I've learned that whether we realize it or not a parent's love is unconditional. It may not be on our terms but it is.

She is in a phase where her friends now come first and I am second. It happened almost overnight. I came back from Christmas and the girl who you might have seen in our Christmas card was no longer there. I now have a somewhat more outspoken, braid extension wearing, struggling to find her identity almost teenager who is beginning to be too cool for Adriana. Friends are now a priority as are boys. It is now that I see clearly how much all seven of us kids must have hurt my mom. She would constantly say to us you will understand when you have your own children. I get it mom I finally do! While Zoey is not mine it is as if she is because sadly her mom is no longer with us so I feel more like a mom than a big sister. I love her no matter what. This kind of love has caught me by absolute surprise because I was expecting to feel something like this when I hold my children for the first time. I've learned that being a mom and experiencing that love can come in a completely different way than you expected. It is a love so grand there are no words for it. She can put me on the back burner and I will still love her because love is growing with someone and holding their hand through the growth.

Dear Mom I am truly sorry for all those times I thought I was too cool for you. I look at pictures like this and think wow she was so beautiful and guiding me towards what eventually became my career because she wanted the best for me and yet at twelve I felt too cool for her and quit ballet to prove my point only to end up being the only one to suffer from that pre teen decision. Here we are in the first musical I ever did, Woman of the Year, I am holding on to her black ballet skirt.


The love I have learned of from having Zoey in my life has taught me to appreciate my mom more and while I would hope she knows this any day today I will tell her once again what I do after I've had a rough day with Zoey, thank you. Simply thank you.

I feel like there are so many kinds of love to celebrate today. The one for your partner, friends, family, those you don't know, and most of all the love of gratitude for being alive! While I believe love is an accessible emotion because we are born being LOVE I also see how sadly some people's challenges in life and experiences have closed their hearts for fear of getting hurt. In my short yet poignant experiences in which I grow more and more aware as time goes by of the importance of love I have come to realize that while getting our heart broken by anyone hurts keeping it closed to the endless possibilities of receiving LOVE again hurts even more and you miss out on this magical beautiful thing called LOVE.

No matter what this day is labeled I have immense gratitude for it and for a lot of people but not just today, always. I see love all around me. I truly do. I was blessed with an early text by my friend Mary Queen in which she proclaimed Happy Valentine's Day followed by a voicemail from my sister saying, "put down the incense and stop talking to the universe for a minute and pick up the phone. Happy Valentines Day." It made me smile because that is how she shows her love to me. She actually knows what I am doing except I haven't made my hike just yet because I am typing this but I am going shortly. And Mercedes I don't light incense when I hike.
I will choose to continue to see see love all day long. It's hard not too because amazing beauty that awaits me at Runyon and my the friends who I will see at Yoga followed by tea with them and an evening with one of my closest friends Jake laughing at one of my other closest friends Eric. Oh and we have to laugh at Eric, it's mandatory since it's a comedy show.

However constantly on my mind today are all those who have no one to be with or proclaim any form of love to on this media/advertiser marketed day. I said a prayer for everyone who feels lonely or is actually alone. This day can be so overwhelming but there are so many ways to show love. It doesn't have to be just between you and a partner. You can give and receive love in so many ways. One of my favorites is showing love for people you may never meet through donating your love by being of service. A great way to find what works for you is by visiting http://www.volunteermatch.org/
and trust me you'll find people to love instantly after you read amazing stories of how they are being love expecting nothing in return.

However to me the grandest love affair you will ever have is the one with yourself. Loving yourself allows you to share the love with others, believe in yourself, not settle, have patience, and grow in faith which will allow you to actually live the endless possibilities that we hear talked about being born of that faith. You will LIVE them and while some will call you lucky all I can see is a person in love with themselves just as they are willing to surrender control of what society says you should be or where you should be all to master the Art of Love. We may not be able to control what society sells to us but we can choose to not abide by it. May your heart be open to all the beauty that God and the Universe have to offer. May this day and everyday remind you that love can not be bought, love simply is. Open every part of your being and look around while having faith and you will be mesmerized by what your eyes will see.

I've learned that no matter what life throws at me or who throws their anger/hurt at me, the best way to for me to attract LOVE is to be LOVE. After learning to love myself just as I am I was compelled to share the idea of acceptance of what is and not what we are told should be with the world, as you will be below. So God thank you for giving me the courage to love myself and love my brothers and sisters and for everyone who you have conspired to send my way who has taught me to love myself and others more. Thank you from the bottom of my heart and soul for all the great teachers! God, you've taught me that "Happiness is not so much in having as sharing. We make a living by what we get, but we make a life by what we give." I LOVE YOU JUST AS YOU ARE,WHOEVER YOU ARE THAT CAME ACROSS THIS BLOG JUST AT THIS VERY MOMENT! HAPPY LOVE YOURSELF, EVERYONE, AND EVERYTHING DAY!