what does love look like (today)?
in one of our meetings, this quote from st. augustine was shared:
What does love look like? It has the hands to help others. It has the feet to hasten to the poor and needy. It has eyes to see misery and want.
i’m not particularly religious, and this shows when i try to interpret scripture. but the question resonates with me for being open-ended. how often do i find myself reflecting on what love looks like in my own life? (not very often)
my concept of love has (thankfully) evolved from big romantic gestures to small and subtle acts that come from…anything, really. turns out there are plenty of ways for love to manifest in platonic and familial contexts, not just romantic ones. maybe love could look like:
- staying in a weird pose to accommodate your sleeping partner
- telling your daughter about unauthorized herbal products because it’s supposedly healthier
- getting angry at your daughter who insists on going to work while still sick
- engaging in cat-related media and bonding with your partner on it together even when you love dogs more
- giving your mother a massage after a long day of doing housework (even when you’re tired yourself)
- learning more about your friend’s current favorite media to talk about it together
and the list goes on
some of these may sound inconsequential, but i try to remind myself that how these come from a place of love
asking myself this question seems to carry the same weight as “what are you grateful for today?” but only with less pressure. the latter intimidates me somehow; i’m not always grateful, and there’s a level of shame in admitting that. but i still want to practice gratitude that’s authentic to me!
there’s gratitude journaling, which i tried during the pandemic. perhaps i was going at it the wrong way, or maybe i was bringing in expectations that affected the whole experience
either way, i fell out of it. it couldn’t hurt to try and pick it up again, under a slightly different angle