What is love?

What a silly question! We all know what love is.

But do we really?  We are living at a time when love seems to be absent. Love is far from being the motivating influence in the world.

It has has been pushed into the background and world events attest to its absence.

Even movies and games are mostly about violence these days because they reflect the society that we live in.

Is it any wonder that romantic love has taken a back seat?  “What is love” becomes a very relevant question indeed.

Shakespeare penned the following words about romantic love more that 4 centuries ago:

“Love is not love which alters when it alteration finds
Or bends with the remover to remove
O no it is an ever fixed mark
A guide to every wandering bark”

These lines from Shakespeare’s famous 21st sonnet is the most beautiful love poem I have ever read. And do you know why these particular lines have the power to move me ?

Because of Shakespeare’s intuitive understanding of the real meaning of true love right there in the very first line:

“Love is not love which alters when it alteration finds.”

We all change over time. Life changes us. Problems change us. We begin to lose the beauty of our youth. But true love endures through sickness and in health as stated in the marriage vows.

It endures through youth and old age; and it can remain constant even through disfigurement. It endures no matter what changes the loved one undergoes.

How many times haven’t you seen elderly couples, ungainly people or really unattractive couples walking down the street hand-in-hand?

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The post Valentine’s Day Special: What is Love? appeared first on Relationship World.

Sometimes a wonderful relationship between animals can humble us. Especially when the relationship involves different animal species.

In this case we see how a parakeet feeds little tidbits to a dog he clearly loves.

Take a look and marvel!

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While everyone around you seems to be buying presents, preparing meals and going to dinners and parties, you feel like a lonely wallflower sitting on the sidelines watching all the dancers whirl by.

When you are feeling alone it rubs salt in the wound to see so much activity and so much shopping and scurrying around.

Your only wish is that it would all go away as quickly as possible.

What are you to feel when the whole world around you seems to be going berserk? Your loneliness is accentuated by all this contrast with your own situation.

So you pretend to be bright and happy. But in reality you are feeling like the only person on the planet who feels miserable and so desperately alone.

But take heart. There are many thousands of people right now who feel exactly as you do.  The only difference is that you haven’t met them and you don’t know who they are. If somehow you could all get together you could have one huge bash that would put all the other party-goers to shame!

But jokes aside, holiday seasons are notorious for making people feel miserable. There are many people out there right now who can’t wait for the holidays to be over so that they can get back to work quickly and regain some semblance of normality.

The important thing to realize is that you are not alone. Many, many people are going through this very same feeling of depression this minute.

The secret lies in learning how to cope with feeling lonely. And this means that you have to make a plan of action.

It’s quite easy.  Simply accept that this is the time to pamper yourself.  Buy that special something you have always wanted.  Treat yourself to something you know you will enjoy.

Buy that new book you have always wanted or make plans to learn that new hobby you’ve always fancied; or explore an interest that you have always wanted to follow such as learn handwriting analysis. Immerse yourself in it and you will be amazed to see how quickly the time passes and how soon you will start to feel better about yourself.

Time to yourself can be a blessing in this overcrowded world. Use the opportunity to get in touch with your creativity. Express your feelings by painting, writing or learning a musical instrument.

And there’s the internet too with chat groups where you can join groups of people with similar interests. Loneliness is a common problem and there are many people out there hoping to connect with others who have similar interests.

Now that you have some time on your hands you can get involved with a cause that you believe in. There is a double advantage here.  You’ll feel good knowing you are doing something worthwhile and furthermore, you may meet some like-minded people who could add a lot of meaning to your life.

For example if you are concerned about the ecology you could become part of a group and go on outdoor excursions. There are all kinds of possibilities for new experiences.

The bottom line is – don’t simply hide under your bed till the holidays are over. With a little change of focus you can turn this time into a valuable and yes, an enjoyable experience. Just set your mind to it.

The post How to Cope with Loneliness during the Holiday Season appeared first on Relationship World.

The post The path of true love appeared first on Relationship World.

Many people spend years and often their entire lives trying to find themselves; all too often without success. It can be a fruitless exercise.

But that doesn’t mean that you should give up the quest because there is real gold to be found in this undiscovered secret.

So how can you find the real you? What are the main things that stand out about you and set you apart from other people?  What are the driving forces that drive and inspire you? And how do these things impact on your relationships?

Fortunately help is at hand.

The 7 Magic Keys to Self-Discovery  reveals a unique way that will show you how to discover the important facts about your personality. At the same time, it will also give you a new understanding of the personalities of your friends and family and give you new insight into your relationships.

The 7 magic keys are the pillars of your personality. It only remains for you to discover what they are and how to identify them.

Why is it important for you to know the real you?

Because the measure of your happiness and success in life is largely dependent on the impact of your personality. And furthermore, the more knowledge you have of yourself, the more understanding you will have of your relationships.

“How to find the Real You – The 7 Magic Keys to Self-Discovery”  is now available!

More about it here: How to find the Real You – The 7 Magic Keys to Self-Discovery

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An overflowing of love

There’s a huge lesson to be learnt from nature. It’s all about the secret relationship between selfishness and generosity.

In nature, selfishness is a self-protective device. As the leaves of a plant curl up and close in towards themselves when the sun is hot and the air is very dry, the plant recognises the need to protect itself against the elements. And so it does not give off any extra moisture to the air.

Every bit of moisture it has must be conserved for its future survival and well-being.  It cannot allow any transpiration through its leaves because it needs every bit of moisture for its own survival.  It is unable to give.

There are many crusty old plants that have devised a careful plan – a mission of not giving. The pine tree has contracted the surface area of its leaves into protective needles to hide its stomata from the drying wind.  No intelligent insect would ever dream of looking for a drop of moisture on a pine needle!

Similarly, a person who feels threatened that he will not have enough for himself also closes up and turns his hands in towards himself.  He looks to his own survival, has nothing to spare and therefore nothing to give.

But when a plant has plenty nutrition, warmth, water and sunlight, it thrives in every way.  It grows and blossoms; it develops fruit and willingly gives of its own richness and abundance. The result of its giving also turns out to be a benefit because the fruit is dispersed and the seeds of its essence spread far and wide.

In the same way, a person who has sufficient nourishment and warmth for his physical and emotional well-being will thrive. And when he has goodness in such abundance that it starts to overflow he does not need to clutch it to himself as he has far more than he can comfortably manage.

So he starts to unfurl his arms and curve out his hands towards others in a gesture of giving. And by the giving of this abundance he too benefits. He is surrounded by the good vibrations of his own generosity and love.
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