WITH ALL THE EAGERNESS OF NEWFOUND LOVE

Remember the first time you ever felt like you were in love? Maybe it was a crush, maybe something more. And the anticipation you felt about the next time or that next moment that you would get to see the object of your affection... woowoo! And remember how giddy you felt when the special person came into view? The moment they entered your field of vision, your heart did flip-flops... you maybe broke into a cold, clammy sweat. Your heart sang and everything in the world looked right and beautiful. Your skin itched with the desire to be touched by that other person. You longed to hold that person in your arms, or longed to be held in THEIR arms. "Is this REALLY love?" you just kept asking yourself.

And remember how heartsick you really thought you were if you were too young to really spend every waking moment with that person? If you were used to seeing him or her at school every day- and wouldn't get to see him or her over the weekend, it just made you crazy.

Time passed.

Lots of time passed.

You have grown. You are an older teen now. Or in your twenties. Or older. Did you marry that first love? Did they love you back? Or did they just never knew you were interested because you never made it obvious? Never said it, to that person?

Love comes and goes. Sometimes we get what we want. Sometimes we don't. Sometimes we get just who makes us complete- never realizing that this is right. Life doesn't always deal things in absolutes. Especially in matters dealing with the heart.

Did Hannibal love Agent Starling?

Don't laugh.

Disappointments come and go. The one whom you love maybe doesn't love you back. Or as much as you love him. Or her. Maybe you have invested years of your life with a spouse whom you love but there is no great passion or excitement. Don't do anything stupid, ok?

Because love isn't like in the movies. Most people know that, I think. But lots of people don't. There are lots of people who live in a kind of daydream. You know the song? "THE VERY THOUGHT OF YOU"... and I forget to do, the little ordinary things...

And love isn't about what you get or recieve in return. Although we all want to be loved back. That's a given. We want satisfaction. We want deep fulfillement. We want a commitment from the object of our affection. We want to see "returns for our investment."

And then we get clobbered. Someone wants a divorce. Wants to break up. Wants to call it quits. There are tears, yelling, hurt feelings. Maybe a complete breakdown because you never saw it coming. You are devastated. Heartbreak knows no barriers. Suffering and sorrow, no boundaries.

You can't give up and stop living.

There is something about living that goes beyond what another person's love can do for us or make us feel.

Do you have a relationship with God? Do you believe in Him? Have room for Him in your busy life? If you do not believe then life must be very empty indeed!

I am one of those persons lucky enough to have someone in my life whom I love dearly. To come home to, every evening after work. To care about and think about, and to want to spend my time with, around our house, and we don't even have to be doing something together, every moment.

Hopefully, you too, have someone.

But if you do not, consider this.

Life should be just as meaningful and fulfilling for the single person as for the not single. It is all a matter of what YOUR focus is on.

If you dwell on sadness, sorrow and pain, and think of nothing else, get help. Seriously.

Because we should be able to move what our mind dwells on, to something else. Something better. Something elevated.

Like hope.

Hope belongs to us all. It should be a state of mind.

For, where there is hope, there is good cheer.

Today, change your focus.

Change your mind.