Love a Stranger

It’s so easy to say I love you to someone whom you have some kind of expectation that they will love you back. Human nature thrives on this feeling of reciprocity so we get excited about making the moment special, creating first impressions, getting that special gift, making the day as perfect as can be. Passion overflows in abundance of kisses, hugs and sensory pleasures.

This Day, can you pause and ask yourself if you can love a stranger or someone whom you have not spoken to for years because they have hurt you?

One of my favorite teachings that helped me open up to this is called Vedanta, an Eastern philosophy that simply says the Spirit in one being is the same as mine, irrespective of race, age, gender, social or economic status. Two beings can have a completely different body and their minds may be unique as well but the heart (Spirit) is pure, infinite and always reaching for the same goal, that of happiness. It just gets veiled and blocked by layers of fear, betrayal and pain. Try the following, the return on your effort ( which by the way becomes effortless) if you don’t think but feel, may surprise you.

• Next time you see a homeless person or a veteran needing food on the streets, can you just acknowledge them with a smile or a hello? For many of them this simple gesture is equivalent to a thousand hugs.

• When you see signs such as “please help, need food”- can your mind not go into that judgment mode of whether it will be used for a drug or alcohol habit? That one dollar you give may not buy him that pack of cigarettes but it might just get him that coffee to keep him warm on the cold cemented streets.

• Is there someone in your life that you wanted to reach out to but kept putting it off for various reasons? Our mind plays all sorts of recordings with lyrics such as ” not the right time, let that person initiate something, it is a morally wrong thing to do, what would other people say?” The lyrics are literally endless and exhausting. Listen to your heart in silence. The Universe is always giving you messages as to what your next step ought to be. Take a chance in love and see how you turn fear into courage, uncertainty into a favorable outcome.

• In a world of digital and social media, there is no reason you can’t text, e-mail, ping, poke, you-tube, tweet to say, “I love you” to someone whom you have not spoken to for years. An estranged family member, your first love, someone you know who is not well and simply needs a few encouraging words? Better yet, send them a snail mail (remember those?) and keep our postal guys gainfully employed!

• To receive love, send out loving thoughts to the world around you. Try acknowledging the people who have inspired you, shown you what love is all about even if they are not physically present with you. I remember when I was nine years old and I would look up to my mother and ask ” Mom, are there a lot of Mother Teresas in the world?” and she simply smiled and said, ” We are all one.”