The Love List

I love to love. Feeling with the whole heart, love is the ultimate experience of higher emotions. It allows the good to come into our lives and the bad to be forgotten, if only momentarily. But how can you open up your heart when it feels like every day is a grind, a punishment just for being alive? The practice of creating a daily Love List is a simple, yet effective, way of centering your emotions in love.

Many of us spend our days anxious, worrying, angry, or unhappy for many different reasons. It’s rainy out. The driver in front of me is going too slow. I’m 10 pounds overweight. I’m tired. My job is too stressful! I need a vacation. How am I going to pay the bills this month? Trust me - it can be very difficult to dig yourself out of the endless cycle of worry, lack, and anger. It does take some effort. There is no magic wand that I can wave at you that will automatically remove all of your stressors. There is no cure-all pill that will fix everything. But if you start by choosing one step you can take towards the path of light and happiness, things will eventually start to get easier for you.

The energy centre of the heart is an important place in our bodies. Some call it the heart chakra. It is where we feel our emotions so deeply. Is it any wonder that a heart is the symbol for love? That we feel broken-hearted when something makes us sad? That we suffer heart attacks as a result of too much stress? We need to be kind to our hearts by allowing them to properly express what they were meant to do - LOVE!

To practice a very basic expression of love, try creating your own Love List. It is simple, and anyone can do it. It is easily repeated and can be worked into your daily routine.

Start by choosing a method of recording your list. A beautiful journal or plain notebook, your laptop or even your phone. Any of these will work. You can write or type your list, or you can speak and record it. Sing it in a song! Text it to a friend or loved one. If you are a visual artist, you could try expressing your list in a drawing or painting journal. There are so many ways to do this!

Placing your attention in the centre of your chest, where the actual organ of your heart is situated, close your eyes and breathe deeply into your heart. Breathe in and out 3 times very slowly. Feel the breath entering your heart center. Breathe in clean, energizing air, and breathe out with any residual negativity that may be lurking inside. After a few minutes, open your eyes, and write down the first thing that comes to mind. What do you love right now? What makes you happy? It can be anything at all. Nothing is too small. Everything counts! Here is my random love list for today:

My cat Miso

The beautiful trees outside my window

Natural lighting

Working from home

Freshly French-pressed coffee

Warm slippers

A pinch of blue sky outside between the grey clouds

Learning to meditate later today!

Getting ID’d to buy wine when I just turned 50

Peace and quiet

Well you get the picture! And trust me - once you think of a single thing to write down on your Love List, it will be hard to stop. I could go on and on for pages and pages. Feelings of love multiply over and over until you are consumed with happiness and warm thoughts. I dare you to try it! One day at a time, one beloved line at a time. Before you know it you will have a gorgeous notebook full of loving thoughts. Could you imagine if everyone in your house did this? What about everyone in your town? In your country?? The world??? Life would be so different and full of joy. I am looking forward to that day. I pray it comes soon. Collectively we can adjust the focus of our world towards kindness and joy.