LOVE IS A MANY-SPLENDOURED THING

February is the month for Love and hence, in this post, I discuss the importance of Love and why we should all cultivate Love. I will also suggest ways to develop Love for others. With Love in our hearts for ourselves, for our partners, our parents, our immediate and extended family members, our friends, our neighbours, our colleagues, our community, our fellow citizens, citizens of other countries, our country and so on, we can achieve happiness and peace in this world. We will tolerate one another’s differences and accept each other’s religion, traditions and culture. There will be harmony and there will be goodwill. People will treat each other with respect and they will not be violent and cruel to others.

All We Need Is Love

Love brings with it kindness, compassion and helpfulness. If we have Love in us, we are able to respond well to people and make them happy. The loving person cares for others, is considerate of the needs of others and will make much effort to assist others. Such a person too, is generous with his or her time, energy, words and money. He or she is willing to reach out to others not just in times of crisis but all the time. With Love we can understand and help others get over the suffering and the agony that they are experiencing.

Love helps us to achieve greater understanding with each other. It brings us closer to people and our sense of belonging is developed. We will not feel isolated and will feel good about ourselves, about others and about the world. This prompts us to achieve and to work well for others. We react positively to everything and we reject negativity and fear. We feel confident about life, about ourselves and about others. We believe that we count and that we are valuable.

Love Motivates

The loving person is motivated to do good work and will influence others to do good work as well. When we love others we are vibrant and vivacious. When others love us, we feel secure, appreciated and wonderful. We feel confident to undertake great tasks, pursue new paths and chart new directions. We help to make the world a better place.

When you have Love in you, you will recognize that others need Love too. Give Love to others, even strangers. Make them feel good so they too will be motivated to perform well.

Love Is Important

Many writers have rated Love as the most important of all values. Some believe that we cannot live without Love. It is as vital as oxygen. A world without Love is one which is barren, cold and unfriendly. Some writers see Love as life’s greatest blessing. It enriches our life and it brings significance and meaning to our relationships.

You cannot have love without commitment. This is what makes Love rich and binding. The commitment though, does not just happen. It needs to be developed. Whether it is with a partner or with friends, with colleagues or with family members, you need to nurture and develop the love that you have for each other.

Develop Love

There are many ways to nurture and develop Love. I can suggest the following:

One good way to develop love is to speak kindly to everyone. Avoid belittling and insulting others. Use praise often and find ways to encourage and motivate others. It helps too, to overlook small irritations and annoying acts and not react to them. When you make a mistake, be quick to admit your fault or error. Do not make excuses.

There is nothing worse in a relationship than for one person to try to manipulate the other so as to get something. It is also not right to be deceitful to each other. Practice honesty.

Always encourage each other in what each one does. Give each other support. Be interested in any project in which the other person is involved. Offer assistance even.

I believe that it is very important to show appreciation to others. Tell each other how much you love and care for them. Thank people for their friendship. Respect each other and be courteous. This will keep the love and the friendship alive and vital.

Every day you should make a commitment to develop your love for others. Practice patience and work to enhance the love. Think of the other person and be willing to give up some things and even make sacrifices.

Trust each other. When you make a promise to do something make sure that you keep the promise. Be responsible for what you say and what you do.

Laugh with each other often. This binds you to each other and you can work and cooperate with one another better. Smile at each other and hug one another often.

Valentine’s Day

In my introduction, I wrote that February is the month of Love. We celebrate Valentine’s Day on the 14th. Valentine’s Day was celebrated at the time of the Romans, around 270 A.D.. There are many stories about the origin of the celebration. However, it was not until the 14th century that the Day became associated with love. According to Henry Ansgar Kelly, the author of Chaucer and the Cult of Saint Valentine, it was Chaucer who linked Valentine’s Day with romance.

In 1381 Chaucer wrote a poem, “The Parliament of Fowls” to commemorate the engagement of England’s Richard the Second and Anne of Bohemia. He linked the royal engagement, the mating season of birds, and St Valentine’s Day in the poem:

For this was on St Valentine’s Day,
When every fowl cometh there to choose his mate

My Wish for You

On Valentine’s Day in 2015, I wish you much Love and Happiness. May you have a splendid day. The following are some things that you can do on Valentine’s Day:

Hug someone.
Express your love to two other people.
Write a letter to someone you have not communicated with
for a while.
Call someone on the phone and tell the person how much
you appreciate his or her friendship.
Be kind to a stranger.
Make a sacrifice for someone you love.

I leave you with this quotation by Mahatma Gandhi:

“Where there is Love there is Life.”