Life Without the “L’s”

         When is life hard? Life is hard when we don’t have the “L’s” and when we stifle our own or someone else’s ability toward the “L’s.”  The “L’s” are learning, laughing, and, of course, loving.

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My daughter asked me the other day, “Dad, how can I not be afraid?”  All I could do at that moment was pause for a second and think, “I bet she thinks she is ‘getting me’ with this one.” (“Getting me” = my daughter loves challenging me with her curiosity.  She will follow up question after question until she gets me to answer “I don’t know.”)

         

Well, back to her original question followed with my pause.  I responded by asking her a question, “Do you love me?” She said, “Yeah, but what do you mean.” “Well, you like loving me right?”  “Yeah, Daddy, what are talking about?” I said, “Well, if you are afraid, then you can stop yourself from loving me. It’s like fear is a wall and on the other side is love.  If you enjoy the feeling of love, then you will be willing to jump or climb the wall of fear to get to the other side. If not, then you will just be afraid and will not experience the great feeling of love.  And the love does not have to be with a person. It can be with anything.  For example, I asked her, “How did you like having the water fight on the roof today?”   “I loved it, Daddy!” “Exactly…” If you continued to be afraid to get on the roof, you would have never felt the love you felt pouring a water bottle over each others’ heads in the hot sun. You see what I mean?” “I guess,” she said. “Dad, can you sleep in my room tonight? I’m scared.”  I asked her, “Do you like when I sleep in your room?” “I love it. It is like a sleep over party!” she said.

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Loving is living, learning is living, and laughing is living.  So if we are always afraid, we are not alive because we will always be on the other side of the wall.  Many feel that the lack of mental stimulation can slow or even stop the flow of oxygen.  With this being the case, guess what? We are dead.

          If we want to feel alive, it is pretty simple — just keep learning, laughing, and loving.  All can be put into places of priority of what we give, receive, and rest.  Do one, and we will be close to the essence of our spirit. Do all, and we are right there staring our spirit right in the face. Reach out and try to touch it.  If at first we do not feel it, then work on our vision so we can see clearer and more vividly.  Then we can allow our feelings to be able to touch it and, more importantly, truly live it.

          So when is life hard? Sure, one can believe this idea of the “L’s."  Or we can just feel it for ourselves that life is hard if you do not have something to believe in.  The more we believe in something, then the healthier our actions within that belief which will effortlessly lead us to ease rather than disease and a happier life. The faith in our spirit has the power to transcend so we can be in sync with the faith of others. And hopefully, with this infinite ability, we can reinvent ourselves and support others in their own healthy reinventions.  I terribly misuse the word “reinvention” because each journey down this path is an original one, a one of a kind journey.