What’s in Your Heart?
Something has come over me, and all I think about is L-O-V-E!
All I listen to is love songs: Love and Happiness.
I want 30 more amazing summers to be with my sweet grand babies, Georgia and Otis, and my sons, their wives, and my hubby, and I believe the road there is paved with L-O-V-E!
And I know the journey will not be an easy feat.
We all get irritable and mad at others at times. We are impatient.We get down on our selves, especially after spending a moment comparing ourselves to others on Instagram.
And it’s hard to love others when we’re not feeling our best and are impatient, irritable, anxious, or experiencing all at the same time. I joke that there are no Ps in my name, and there aren’t: Just watch when I’m in a long grocery store line with a clerk who is taking her sweet time, and you’ll find me darting between lines trying to find the fastest one.
But, these days, I’m being mindful. I’m slowing down. While on LA Freeways, I’m jamming great music rather than switching between lanes.
My husband is monitoring what I say to our boys, and I’m constantly reminding myself that only requested advice is GOOD advice! The rest is just meddling in folks’ lives, which is none of my business.
So, I’m keeping my head down. I’m creating. And I’m loving.
Once I attended a workshop in a Zoom and the facilitator of the workshop was one of the meanest women I’d ever encountered. And as I sat there, I wondered how she could be so mean. So while she was berating and critiquing my work, I left the Zoom, mentally and virtually, and begin to google her to see what her story was. I found that she had a horrific past of tragedy, and I begin to understand her more. When I returned to the Zoom, I put on my compassion hat and filled my heart with L-O-V-E, first for myself, to protect myself from her darts, and then for her. I didn’t cuss her:)!
It was an act of returning to love, similar to the name of one of my favorite books. It’s by Marianne Williamson and was given to me right after I started writing. I was at a conference in Belgium with my Mom, who, at the time, was Director of Military Schools for the Department of Defense, Atlantic Region. We had traveled to Belgium from London, where we were living at the time. She was speaking at her conference with hundreds of educators who worked for her, and I sat in the audience because I didn’t have anything else to do. Suddenly, a principal, who was close to my Mom and whom I adored, tapped me on the shoulder. Perhaps, he could see that I was just passing the time and a bit bored. He whispered, “I have great book you should read.” And then he gave me his copy of Return to Love by Marianne Williamson. I exhaled, knowing that it was a divine gift, something I was suppose to read. I then left the conference and went upstairs to our room and did not emerge until I had finished the book. And when I came out of that hotel room, I was changed.
And that’s how I feel in this season of life. I’m emerging from 30 years of answering God’s call to write and create. Although the journey hasn’t been as rosy as I’d liked, there’s satisfaction deep in my soul, and I know that all I need to do now is to Return to Love!
How are you feeling in this season? And what is in your heart?
Love,
MeMe
P.S. You can always email me at memekellyinspires@gmail.com