Love comes in all shapes and forms and packages. We just need to open it with care and look closely to find the message love delivers beneath all the wrappings and ribbons. We don’t get to choose what is handed to us daily in terms of occurrences but we get to choose our reactions and paths ahead of us. You wake up in the morning, or in the middle of the night, or in the afternoon, or whenever really, and there is a delivery! Many times, these packages are not the surprises you were expecting: all hearts and chocolates and flowers (Valentine’s coming up so I know what you’re thinking and I wouldn’t say no to that either!) but many times it is delivered in the form of bad, very bad or terrible news. It punches you right out in the face and knocks you on your knees, initially. “What a lovely fudging surprise!” you think.
If you’ve recently received such a “gift” you might not want to hear this now, just think of a similar painful incident in the past and your learning and growth from it. I consider such packages as one of many faces of Love. It doesn’t feel much like love when it happens but if you love yourself enough you’ll give yourself yet another chance for a higher growth, forgiveness, and possibly sharing your gift with those whom you recognize may need it later on.
Last week two of my dear ones received horrific surprise packages: loss of a child for one and cancer for the other. It’s been really painful for them and everyone who loves them. It took me a few days just adjusting to it all. These are definitely not easy roads… far from it actually. A week has passed now and they have both started their new journeys taking one step in front of the other. In the meantime, they are both being drenched in immense amounts of love, compassion and support. And that’s sweet love’s gift delivery.
As for me, this past week I received many cute little energizing “packages” here and there that made me smile, smirk, laugh and feel gitty in between the layers. I wouldn’t see it this way a few years ago but my own share of surprise gifts along the way have enabled me to enjoy them now: a little glimpse of sun and rainbow while it’s pouring rain.
