Love is...

Valentine's Day has come and gone for another year and there were a few observations that I found very interesting in the last week that got me thinking a little bit more about love and how it impacts ourselves, our friends, our families and our little humans.

I am not going to spend a lot of time on this and I am not going to overcomplicate it. I think I (and many others) have done that enough already!

So I am going to aim to be as succinct as possible! (I am not entirely convinced that it is actually possible by the way but I will give it my best shot!)

Love is life.

It is life in action.

Our actions demonstrate our love on a level that words can not.

Love is a VERB. Without Action, it is merely a WORD!

Love in action - is service.

Definition of Service: the action of helping or doing work for someone.

How do you know when someone loves you? How do the people you love know when you love them? How do your little humans know that you love them?

When you ask kids how their know their mum and dad love them, you get responses like:

* They play with me  * They give me hugs and kisses  * They read me a story 

* They make me dinner * They take me to the park * They get stuff for me that I need

* They always care for me * They cuddle me in bed * They tell me they love me

* They take me out to dinner and different places 

It seems really simple, right?

That's because it is. 

I understand that the needs of our little humans seem a lot less complex than most adults we know. But the reality is...we have a tendency to overthink and overcomplicate it all.

There are 5 love languages - quality time, receiving gifts, words of affirmation, physical touch and acts of service. 

When I look at the responses our little humans give, I realise that they cover ALL love languages. While adults desire all, they are mainly driven by two top ones. 

Everyone has their particular love language but for most people, it is always more effective to SHOW rather than TELL!

Children who grow up being loved deeply become adults who are prewired to love deeply.

Your child will follow your example, not your advice. 

Maybe we can learn from our little humans how to show the people in our world, how we love them.

 How do your children know that you love them? (To the parents) 

(I would love to hear what your kids would say in response to that question in the comment section below!)

 How do the children in your classroom know that you care for them?  How can your classroom be more loving, nurturing and supportive to the needs of the children in your care and all the 'stuff' they bring with them into your room? (To the teachers)

(That would be a very interesting question to ask!)

 What can you do this week to show your family/partner that you love them?

 What has your family/partner done to show you that they love you recently?

(Think carefully.... sometimes we miss the small stuff!)

 Do you know what your partner's love language is? And do they know yours?

(That could help to make a big shift!)

The quality of your life is the quality of your relationships

(with our kids, colleagues, family, partner, friends)

So let's get those right this year!

We are but simple beings really!

We all want to love and to be loved but sometimes it gets messed up in the middle and how we communicate that doesn't quite come across the way we intend it to.

So as we move past Valentine's Day for another year, let us think about how we can move through the rest of the year showing how we love and care for each other.

Love without action is meaningless and action without love is irrelevant.

Deepak Chopra 

Until next week...have the most loving and mindful week!

Clarissa xo