In a world filled with anger, jealousy, greed, lust and hatred, we get inundated with stories of energy wasted on lives lived full of sin. Yet, above all, there is the most wonderful energy ever created; love. Love is an energy that's ever-present. Sometimes it consumes us and burns as bright as the sun in the sky. At its brightest it's capable of creating the greatest gift of all, the gift of life. Other times it sneaks up on us like a stealthy samurai in the night and surprises us with a precious story of summer romance that'll be remembered in the recesses of one's mind till their dying days. In retrospect, one will sit alone with those thoughts of romance, then suddenly crack a tender smile on their face. That's love. That's what it does. Sometimes love sparks hot for a few years, a few decades maybe, then dwindles. Some hold tight to each burning ember, begging it not to die. Wondering what happened to it. What they did and how they can get that feeling back. And, sometimes, let's be honest, sometimes it dies a horrible tragic death.
Some people are blessed with love and manage to turn up love's magnanimous energy for 50 years together and end up side by side in cemetery plots to become part of the earth together forever as one. While others spread love like a mailman making his rounds through the neighborhood by dosing each person they encounter with a little sprinkle of love's splendid joy. Hey, I don't judge. Some people have a lot of love to give.
Sometimes I sit alone with my thoughts and think about the love that created me, my family members and loved ones. I look at the love stories around me that flourish, create new life, new heartbreak, new joy and new sadness. I feel that energy. I weighs heavy on me at times, yet I'm thankful I've been given the chance to create each new ember of love that consumes my heart and makes me feel alive.
Sometimes one might not understand love, or see it or get it. They might look at it and wonder how it exists between two people. They might see it and feel uncertainty or pain. One thing about love is that it makes a person feel. It touches them in ways they can't explain. That's what arguably the greatest energy in this world can do. Never doubt it. Like a tidal wave capable of crushing a village, it can move lives in different directions. It's definitely a catalyst to create change. Everyone knows that change allows us to learn, grow and progress. Some people believe mistakes are mankind's way of forcing change and making us learn, grow and flourish. We go through life as members of couples, as families, as communities, as countries progressing toward change that hopefully betters our world as a whole. I like to think that way.
For those of you who know me, all this talk of love might seem a bit out of character. I don't talk about it much, yet best believe I see it everyday. I'm aware of love and even let it embrace me if it must. Sometimes a person can sit back, relax and just watch love work. They can watch in awe as it propagates its magic on loved ones, then suddenly twists their lives into uncertainty and despair. I've seen all this over the years. At this point in my life, I don't question love all too much. When it hits someone, I choose to celebrate it with them. Apparently, a new ember or two of love's billowing fire shot up hit my sister and her new beau. The two of them ran away to that city that shines the brightest. You know the one. The one filled with copious quantities of sin. Anyway, back to this love thang. They walked through that city of sin, found a chapel and made their love official to the government. Yep, they got married.
Later today I'm supposed to meet up with the new couple to celebrate their love over a family lunch. To my loving sister, I have this to say. I wish you nothing but the best. May your love burn brighter than the embers of a Nasa rocket ship on its way to the moon. If it dwindles, don't let it die. Work your hardest to get the most out of that energy. Torch that energy and stoke love's fire for all its worth. Enjoy each and every moment of the greatest energy on earth. To my new brother in law, I welcome you. I thank you for your kindness, generosity and love I've witnessed during this courtship. Most of all, I thank you for showing my sister the new love she has needed and celebrate the new story that has been created. May the energy encompassed in these words stoke the fire of your love to ever reaching new heights.
With love,
Brian
