Love

Love without expectation.

That 3 word sentence has so much power packed behind it. I realized the moments I felt most at peace and joyful were the times I was living and loving those I love without any expectation and with true intention. 

We can begin to love intentionally and feel joy when we accept others for who they are, and accept who we are. When we reject who others are, we reject ourselves. You owe it to yourself and others to feel nothing but respect and joy in the presence of those you love. 

Love has no expectations. Fear is full of expectation

The Mastery of love by Don Miguel Ruiz

This quote and the book it is from have taught and helped me in so many ways. I now have found myself feeling very passionate about this particular topic. The moment I connected fear with expectation my whole perception changed. Seriously, think about it. When you are feeling particularly anxious or fearful about something that hasn’t even happened, a.k.a “the future”, we more than likely are placing expectation upon that particular situation, EXPECTING a certain outcome to happen. Which then makes you feel a pit of yuck in your stomach. Why do we do this to ourselves?! We are obsessed with thinking about things that haven’t even happened or will never happen.

How does this relate to love? We have a bad habit. A bad habit of placing fear upon everything in our lives including love. Now, I’m not specifically talking about romantic relationships here, but rather all relationships you may have with others. When you truly allow yourself to love another person, you are letting go of all judgement, expectation or fear. Just pure intentional love. How beautiful is that?! This will help you remain in the present, which is ultimately the best thing you could do for yourself mentally.

We are not perfect beings. No matter how good we are at staying in the present moment, the mind will drift and create expectation. But becoming aware of it when it happens is the vital piece of the puzzle. Once you have that puzzle piece, the puzzle still may be challenging but you begin to become a little more confident putting it all together. 

Love. Love. Love.

When you love someone, surrender your heart. Love with no guards or shields your mind may be putting up. Love intentionally. Be genuine with your heart.