Love Is

We use love in many of our sayings.

We attach love to all kinds of emotions and feelings.

We believe we love others when we are satisfied with how we order them into our world.

We do these things believing we know what love is.

We do these things believing we are in control.

It is natural to try to control the very thing we desire most because, in some ways, we want to believe that having control will make us safe and secure.  Safe from pain and free from feeling empty.

But somehow, we know better.  Deep down, we know that love can’t be caught and controlled.  Instead, it is love that catches us.

During these moments, we are reminded again of its unpredictability, power, and demands.  Sacrifice.  Dying.  Surrendering.  Humility.  Forgiveness.  All of these things are demanded when we are caught.  Yet, these demands produce something more.  Loneliness.

Loneliness, which is necessary for hope to be born.

The fruits of this loneliness help strip away our feelings, selfishness, security, and ego, leaving us vulnerable and at the mercy of what love is.

Here, we hope the terrible ache becomes the ground for the beautiful to blossom.  Here, we hope that the sharp agony becomes the avenue for the journey to continue.

In the end, we are left with what is.

I am.

You are.

And Love is.

 

My heart leans heavy

on barren things

that can’t support

the pain it sings.

Its arms must hug

the rocks

on shore,

while its feet

dance

the ocean floor.

Through salty water

swallowed at birth

its tongue must taste

the salt of earth.

It’s ears,

submerged,

must hear the sigh

of sunken treasures’

daily try.

Its eyes must see

a final place

where running tears

can win the race.

“Heart Sense in Deep Water”

– Rita A. Simmonds