With each repetition of this simple phrase, I found myself appreciating the sentiment more and more. And I found myself considering all of the recent experiences I've had that demonstrate this entirely.
Yesterday, I delivered a monthly allotment of food to a couple who currently cannot leave their home for health reasons. Despite their overwhelming health problems and resultant inability to work, their resilience is incredible. On nights when they are feeling capable, they will scavenge through the city, looking through other people's trash, seeking out treasures.
And truthfully, they have seen potential where others cannot. They scowl when they see things going to waste. They have been able to furnish their entire one-room apartment with things that they have reclaimed. With considerable pride, the woman pointed to a shelf, beaming as she claimed that everything had been found in the trash. Their home is composed of thousands of different objects, creating the most intricate space imaginable. Everything works in relationship to provide for necessities. The cardboard around the walls functions as headboards, but also for insulation.
Love liberates. Love gives second chances. Love sees potential.
Right now, the man has lost sight in one of his eyes. He suffers from cataracts, and in time, his doctor has assured him, the cloud will move, and his sight will be restored. But now, he waits in a haphazard state, unable to work, unable to provide food. With eye patches limiting his sight even further, he has been puttering around the room, tinkering with his things.
This couple is bound in relationship. Together, they demonstrate to one another the capacity for restoration, displayed in the potential they see in their things and the potential that they see in one another. They give to one another in simple but profound ways, by preparing coffee for one another, by moving things around for clearer paths. They assisted one another in their respective walks. Together, in a foreign country, and in spaces where they cannot see, they are safe with one another. Love has liberated them to trust in the unknown.
It takes a certain level of unabashed confidence to assert that I was acting in love when I delivered food to this beautiful family. But I do believe that I was acting in love, and I do believe that the project I am working for is motivated by love. And I do believe that I witnessed a ripple of liberation because of love, when I saw that the security of food enabled this man to care for a bird he discovered with a broken wing. The man put out precious crumbles of bread, wooing the bird in for its nourishment. The bird has now taken up residence behind a broken washing machine, fittingly beside so many other things waiting to be praised and polished into their highest selves.
Love liberates us to live into our highest selves. Ultimately, the highest expression of love will be the bird's freedom, after it has been loved into a full life once again. Love provides security to venture into the unknown - one hand outstretched into the darkness, the other clutching the hand of another.
Also, if you're interested in hearing Maya's gorgeous words... here's a link:
Yesterday, I delivered a monthly allotment of food to a couple who currently cannot leave their home for health reasons. Despite their overwhelming health problems and resultant inability to work, their resilience is incredible. On nights when they are feeling capable, they will scavenge through the city, looking through other people's trash, seeking out treasures.
And truthfully, they have seen potential where others cannot. They scowl when they see things going to waste. They have been able to furnish their entire one-room apartment with things that they have reclaimed. With considerable pride, the woman pointed to a shelf, beaming as she claimed that everything had been found in the trash. Their home is composed of thousands of different objects, creating the most intricate space imaginable. Everything works in relationship to provide for necessities. The cardboard around the walls functions as headboards, but also for insulation.
Love liberates. Love gives second chances. Love sees potential.
Right now, the man has lost sight in one of his eyes. He suffers from cataracts, and in time, his doctor has assured him, the cloud will move, and his sight will be restored. But now, he waits in a haphazard state, unable to work, unable to provide food. With eye patches limiting his sight even further, he has been puttering around the room, tinkering with his things.
This couple is bound in relationship. Together, they demonstrate to one another the capacity for restoration, displayed in the potential they see in their things and the potential that they see in one another. They give to one another in simple but profound ways, by preparing coffee for one another, by moving things around for clearer paths. They assisted one another in their respective walks. Together, in a foreign country, and in spaces where they cannot see, they are safe with one another. Love has liberated them to trust in the unknown.
It takes a certain level of unabashed confidence to assert that I was acting in love when I delivered food to this beautiful family. But I do believe that I was acting in love, and I do believe that the project I am working for is motivated by love. And I do believe that I witnessed a ripple of liberation because of love, when I saw that the security of food enabled this man to care for a bird he discovered with a broken wing. The man put out precious crumbles of bread, wooing the bird in for its nourishment. The bird has now taken up residence behind a broken washing machine, fittingly beside so many other things waiting to be praised and polished into their highest selves.
Love liberates us to live into our highest selves. Ultimately, the highest expression of love will be the bird's freedom, after it has been loved into a full life once again. Love provides security to venture into the unknown - one hand outstretched into the darkness, the other clutching the hand of another.
Also, if you're interested in hearing Maya's gorgeous words... here's a link:
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