Connection is what life is all about. Whether it’s connecting with people, places, or ideas. Creating a sense of unity both physically and spiritually is what fills up the majority of our time. At the heart of it all is love. Love is the glue that binds us together, and it’s what makes every relationship meaningful. Be it the bond between you and a new pet, or the feeling you have for your hometown. Awareness that all these connections are a form of love can help you embellish each relationship you have.
Unfortunately, we’re not taught how to love. We have to learn on our own through personal experiences, and often, we’re not very good at it. While our natural instincts are great at the warm and fuzzy parts of connection; learning to enjoy and embrace the good moments of connectivity. We tend to struggle when it comes to aspects of disagreements and separation. That’s where learning and self-reflection come in. By engaging our logical left brain through reading and discussions, we can learnt to better understand our emotions and grow from past experiences.
One of the most challenging things about love is having to let go. Whether it’s leaving a place you’ve grown to love or saying goodbye to a special someone, it can be tough to move on. Traveling for so long I’ve often been asked “do you miss home?” As much as I could agree, I also miss all the other places I’ve seen. Instead of being upset about not being there, you should be excited for the fact that you got the chance to go there in the first place. We can all choose to think like that. Instead of dwelling on what’s lost, we should focus on what we’ve gained.
The same can be said with a relationship the more special you believe they were the happier you can feel that you got to experience them in your life. Think about the world, just for a moment, how your life was before you met that special person. You didn’t think someone like that could exist; and then all in the blink of an eye, your life changed because of one small connection. Your life just got a little more ‘spicier’ for the mere fact you met that person. Even if they’re not the one or you never see them again. They can open your eyes to see the potential connections that are out there.
Sometimes the connection with a person may be so strong, you really don’t want to leave them – again, this is an opportunity to choose happiness over sadness. This can be achieved by analysing your motives towards wanting the relationship in the first place. As Rabbi Berger says;
“Standing under the Chuppah (wedding ceremony) are two extremely selfish individuals who only want the best for themselves. If you truly loved them you’d find them someone much better than you!”
Having this perspective that you love them so much that you just want the best for them is an expression of your gratitude and creates the best path for yourself as well. Instead of separating from someone with negative intent, which just creates a cynical connection between you and them, it also develops a gloomy outlook on future relationships and the universe – you’ll tend to search for the bad aspects rather than focus on the good, this would be choosing to wither rather than grow.
Every connection, no matter how brief or fleeting, is an opportunity for growth and learning. By reflecting on our motives and understanding that love means wanting the best for someone, even if that means letting them go. We can choose to see the positive in any situation. Leaving with positivity creates growth and opens up new paths forward. Whether it’s leaving a hometown we don’t like or ending a relationship that’s no longer serving us, we should always focus on the possibilities that lie ahead. By doing so, we become more aware and open to new opportunities and are motivated to search for what we truly want.
Love can be blind, but as long as we’re aware of our emotions and accepting with our choices, we can always feel our way forward. In the end, it’s love and connection that give our lives meaning, and by growing from these relationships, we can live a fulfilling and satisfying life.
