LOVE

Much of my life I thought that I was ruled by my rationality.  I imagined that I formed opinions and made decisions in my life based on analysis and logic.  But as I got older and reflected on the really big decisions I had made, they were all based on emotion.  And one emotion stood out above all the rest: love!  My mother and father’s love was the first thing I experienced and formed the basis for my perspective on life in my earliest years. And at some point much later I realized that one love of mine, the love of my late wife, was the overwhelming proof of the power of love.  The first poem below is a poem I wrote to my wife professing my belief that our love proved that love could be the ultimate power in our human lives.  It seemed appropriate to me that I should write this poem in the form of a Shakespearean sonnet, both my first and last attempt at this form.  The second poem below is the 'scripture' from my Book of Living proclaiming love as the guiding force in our lives.  But I would have never come to that conclusion without the love my wife and I shared. The last poem describes the heart of a loving relationship for two lovers on their wedding day.

Sonnet number I

Dear one, who walks with me on life's great trail,
You ask of me what rules man's heart and mind?
Doth reason pure over passion prevail?
Or is our life by our passion defined?
In fear, with greed and rage and pride some dwell,
Till soon their Godless lives with hell entwine. 
Can love and kindness our afflictions quell,
And lead us back with haste to peace divine?
What proof have we, that love will banish hate?
That one supreme emotion trumps the rest,
And claims control of mind and heart and fate.
And steers a path that goes from worst to best.
This proof, my dear: Our love doth us enthrall
And leaves no doubt that love will conquer all!

LOVE AS THE GUIDING FORCE IN OUR LIFE

God, our Father, is within us.
Our Father is the innate capacity of we humans to love
     and be loved.
Our first obligation is to fully embrace our Father and nurture
     all the good that comes from love in our daily lives.
Each of us is born with the seed of God within us, but to
     realize the full potential of the Father we must encourage
     the seed to grow.
As we grow we must practice loving others, loving ourselves,
     and being loved by others.
As we practice we will see that love flows with understanding,
     and that lack of understanding is a great obstacle to love.
We naturally have a better chance to love those whom we
     know the best because we are more likely to understand
     them the best.
Compassion is the ability to love those who we don't know well.
     We do this through understanding that all human beings
     are our brothers and sisters in this life.
Love, understanding and compassion towards others results in:
     - Kindness,
     - Forgiveness,
     - Mercy,
     - Acceptance without prejudice,
     - Open mindedness,
     - Tolerance,
     - Respect for others, and
     - Honesty.
From love of ourselves comes:
     - Confidence,
     - Satisfaction, and
     - Peace.
From being loved by others we receive back all the benefits
     of the love we have given to others, plus we will have
     joy and happiness for ourselves.
Much suffering and disappointment flows from our afflictions
     (desire, greed, ignorance, suspicion, anger, etc.)
Loving and being loved will help us to banish our afflictions by
     realizing that this love is infinitely more important than the
     objects of our afflictions.
Love of ourselves allows us to work hard with confidence, and
     enjoy the satisfaction of individual achievement that in turn
     allows us to gather the resources necessary for both our
     individual and common good.
When both our individual and common good are served we are
     on a path to peace.
 

Love in Marriage 

What is love, two young lovers asked
As they prepared to take their vows.
Then each in turn, with loving words,
Their thoughts on love espoused.

First the Groom
       Next the bride.

Love is the moment of our very first kiss
That sent shivers up my spine.
Love is simply holding your hand
Feeling your heart beat with mine.

Love is the greatest power in the world
And I’ve focused it all on you.
Love is the slightest touch of your lips
That warms me through and through.

Love is taking a walk with you
Forgetting the cares of the day.
Love is starting each day with you
To send me on my way.

Love is working together
And finding a way to agree.
Love is sharing our mutual hopes
About what our future might be.

Love is raising our kids together,
The most important thing we do.
Love is living together forever
And being the Mom of our crew.

Love is promising my whole life
Will be dedicated to you.
Love is returning that promise
And doing the same for you.

And so these two have set on their way
With love as their guiding light.
We never know what our future will be
But with love’s help, it can’t help but be bright!