Forgive me for waiting to write this post 'till the start of July. I had a lot of family and friend related events to attend and, as this month came to a close, I entertained the idea of skipping this post altogether. Though as I was driving home from work today it began to downpour. Looking out from my car I saw a beautiful rainbow.....a lovely reminder of what came to pass this month. Needless to say I took it as a sign that I should make the effort to type out my thoughts for the month of June.
Anyway, the theme for this post... is love.
Who says love is only for February right?
We experience so many different types of love throughout our lives. The love we have for family comes first and stays with us throughout our lives. Then there's the love we have for friends we make. As we become more aware of the world around us, our concept of love expands beyond the people we encounter. The love we have for material objects, (such as our favorite toy) comes next, followed shortly by the love for certain activities like sports, painting, playing video games, or even blogging ;).
Then of course, there's.... that love. You know the love I'm talking about. Its the love you experience when that special person holds your hand, and all at once your heart feels heavy, like its rooted to the ground.... yet it also feels so light it could be carried away with the faintest breeze. If I had to pick which of the types of love changes the most over the years in terms of its strength and its endurance, it would be this one. This type of love is not for the faint of heart as it gives you strength, yet it leaves you simultaneously vulnerable. And, most importantly, its a type of love that everyone deserves, no matter who you are.
This month, America opened itself to love, and it brought me great joy to see the many celebratory tweets, pictures, videos and even flags. I am so grateful for the fact that, when I have children of my own, they will have the good fortune to be
born in a country where the law of the land gives them the right to
marry whomever they choose (beyond the borders of Massachusetts now). When I speak to them of the fight or marriage equality, it will be a fight that happened in the past and it will not be one they have to wait for with bated breath. It took us a while to get to this point, but I am glad my generation had privilege to witness such great change.
Why?
Because from this singular event, my generation has proof that the love we experience over the course of our lives inspires us to do great things.
It pushes us to pursue the things we want out of life, through the activities that have grown to become our passion. In our pursuit of other things, we also learn that the inner force that drives us can also fuel our fight for those we love.
It teaches us to share in the material things we love, whether that thing is the toy dinosaur that you've had since kindergarten, a home where all the worldly possessions you have acquired reside, or even the sharing of symbols such as rings. Through sharing we learn the value of the material and immaterial. Through sharing we learn humility, we learn collaboration, and we learn sacrifice.
It allows us to grow through our relationship with others. Through friendship, we learn acceptance, loyalty, joy, compassion and, if its right, friendship can also blossom into romance.
It grants us the happiness that comes with being a part of a family and starting one of your own if you so choose. Through family we learn that love is unconditional and enduring. Through family, we learn that love knows no race, ethnicity, or gender.
Love is strange, unpredictable, and wonderful. And most importantly...
It always wins.
Much Love...Always,
Hayleigh
Very lovely, thought provoking and inspiring. Thank you!
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