Happy Easter!! and Love Each Other!!

Off to Paris...

Much love to everyone today. Whether you are alone (as I am for the day, at least) or with family or friends or a lover - know that you are very important in this world. You have already made your mark - someone, somewhere, has grown because of you. You may never know, but it is an indisputable truth.

So... Love Yourselves and Love Each Other...

One day, when everyone learns his own self-worth, perhaps then the world would be as we wish it. Until then, instead of "saving the world," let's concentrate on what we can do and what we all need to work on - loving those around us as well as we can. Loving them without conditions - without saying they need to be a certain weight, age, level of accomplishment, wealth, level of education. Let's just take those we love and say, "I love you for exactly who you are. I learn from being with you every day. I'm so glad you are in my life."

I urge you - if you want this world to be a better place - the next time you move to criticize someone (maybe their hair is sloppy or they've not done the dishes or they lost their job) realize the ways that this hardship for you will encourage your own growth (which is a good thing) and the ways that they do give to you everyday. Instead, express your love and faith and respect for that person, at least to yourself.

Some might say that telling someone the truth if they look terrible (for an instance of possibly loving criticism) is loving. Perhaps. It is important, in a very loving way, to tell someone something critical if they may not have realized that there was something wrong. Yes, then I agree. But if you're just getting on someone's case about something they know about - I don't believe that is ever loving. It is telling them that they are wrong - which tears down a person's sense of self-worth (whether it should or not). More importantly, it says, "when I see you, I don't see the person I love, I only see a person with messy hair" or whatever. I nag too but it does not promote growth.

And if you've ever worked with autistic children with any success - you know this. They respond to love - not criticism. Sometimes people CANNOT do better at the moment. Austistic children cannot just do what you would like them to most times - and, believe it or not, they WANT to please you. This is why they so often throw fits and the more highly functional ones go on about how they are 'bad boys' or 'bad girls.' They know they're not living up and they so badly want to, because they want to please you, and they want to be loved. Who doesn't?

People will grow - if you trust that they will grow. If you give them the right nutrients - the support, the unconditional love, the understanding: they will grow. But, like this the growth will be for THEM because they want to - not for you. We can always do better - but we need to see that some people start out at different places than others. Everyone has different abilities, aptitudes, talents, passions, drives. This means that everyone struggles with different things - and sometimes it's hard to live up - but learn to appreciate the baby steps. And please love us anyway!

I believe, I'm not incredibly religious, but I believe that God made us each as we are supposed to be. I also believe that we each have a path to follow - and it is never straight, but meandering. We have to let everyone follow their own path, learn their own way - if we want them to truly understand what they've learned. Anyway, we don't really know much ourselves, in the end, do we? There's lots of things we do wrong every single day.

So, love each other, please. Every time you choose to love, you've added that much love to the world. I know that each one of us has something beautiful in us. Why don't we show it, use it, act on it, express it? Because we don't believe in it. We need others to help us believe. Love each other and foster that belief.

Comments? Questions? Differing experiences? Please leave a comment...

Jenniebee