“To truly love we must learn to mix various ingredients - care, affection, recognition, respect, commitment, and trust, as well as honest and open communication.”- Bell Hooks, truth teller
This weekend marked the one year anniversary of my union with my partner.In the past I found myself at opposite ends with those I came to express my love to, now as I write this I can’t help but remember these ends and how different, yet similar they are to the energy I carry now. Being in a relationship, in my opinion, calls for a certain degree of responsibility. You have a bond, a connection that can give you a chance to see yourself in the eyes of another. Like a mirror. God has blessed me with a partner who helps me to innerstand my ways of being and therefore provides me with the divine opportunity to either change or embrace them. Much of who I am, that I have rediscovered this far, revolves around love. Love is so powerful so it makes sense. Looking back at the past 365 plus days I have spent getting to know and bonding with my partner has taught me some lovelee things:
- Patience is a gift, giving and expressing patience is an act of love
- It is ok to laugh, to feel the joy within
- Un-divided attention is more intentional than attention alone
- Inspiration can come from anywhere in your life
- Nothing is a coincidence
- Courage and love speak louder than fear
- Speak to your love as you would speak to yourself, tone is everything
- Learning how someone else best receives love, teaches you the best way to give them love
- Your relationship is what YOU and YOUR PARTNER decide it is, nothing more and nothing less
- Be with someone who makes you feel safe
- Be with someone who matches your level of optimism for life
- Sharing really is caring
- Communicating past fear shows you why the fear didn’t need to be there
- Common interests are nice, but difference in perspective helps you both grow
- Love thyself first and genuine love will find you
- You really can find someone who loves you for you
Reflecting on the love that has found me fills my heart with joy. I have a best friend, lover, muse, protector, and partner. I feel grateful, even for the times when things aren’t the way I think they should be. Everything that happens happens with purpose. The day I met my partner I was with two of my great friends, they’d come to visit me in my new home here in Chicago. A great day and at the end I had a chance encounter with the person I have since come to love and grow close to. It is wild how time seems to work. 365 days, an entire year just like that. I find myself trying to constantly savor our lives as they are right now, because some day I know we will have grown older and we will begin to think of the moments we loved the most. I want to think of all the moments I loved the most, savoring them in the now will help. Being in a relationship is a blessing, truly. I hope that whoever reads this and wants love, that you find it. I believe as beings we are all capable of being loved and loving another, love is source. Bless
– Lee Sunshine