I have been thinking a lot lately about the topic of  LOVE. Maybe because this week began with Valentine’s Day, or maybe just because it is something I have been contemplating my entire life.

I think it’s stating the obvious when I say, LOVE is something we all contemplate in one way or another. I have been really learning a lot about it however, in a BIG way, on many different levels. I recently shared my feelings with someone who has been a special part of my life. Telling him that I had deep love for him was totally scary, yet it has opened a whole new world for me. Through the experiences I had with this person, and the interactions, feelings I had to process, and all that I got see within me as a result, I have been blessed with the ability to be vulnerable, and to truly have genuine love, compassion, and respect for myself.

To be able to love deeply, takes fitness of the heart, mind, and spirit.

When our heart gets broken, we have 2 choices. We can break down, or break open. It’s kind of like when you were a kid. Remember playing in the shore at the beach and getting slammed down into the sand by each breaking wave. I was one of those kids who may have gotten slammed down and maybe cried the first time or two, but eventually I learned that if I hung on too long to the pain, I would miss the entire experience and opportunity to gain the courage, strength, and excitement I needed to do it all over again. You see, there was always another wave coming right after the one that knocked me down, and therefore, always another chance to ride gracefully to the shore on it. So I learned to quickly jump up with a big smile and playfully dive right into the next wave.

That’s how I am choosing to see love these days. Each wave is new. No wave is ever the same as the one before it, and with every slam we get into the sand, we get better at not breaking down from the fall, the fear, and the shock, but instead we learn to jump up playfully, and dive right into the next one.

What do you choose to do when your heart breaks? Do you break down, closing off to the next wave, or do you break open, and playfully try again and again until you find the perfect wave for you?

I am grateful that I love as deeply as I do. This is a gift, not a curse, although I would have argued this in the past. Now I can see, that life IS relationships, and being in a loving relationship with a partner is the best stress relief, and one of the most powerful medicines that exist on the planet.

So, until I am in this kind of connected, loving relationship, with another soul I can grow and heal with, I will keep jumping up and diving into each wave, again and again, playfully enjoying the ride. To me, love is worth it.

Please share your experiences with me here, and if you like this article, please SHARE it below with your FB and Twitter friends:) Here’s to the fitness of your heart, mind, and soul.

Love,

Erin