Being In Love

There’s a lovely romantic expression ‘I am in love with you’, which has been used so often that we have lost sight of its true meaning. Most of us think that when we utter these words, we are telling someone that we have deep feelings for them. In fact, for some reason, people attribute greater depth of feeling to ‘being in love’ with someone than just ‘loving’ them. Either way, the implication is that this term of endearment is dependent on two separate people, one being in love with the other.

The question is, does love cease to exist if there is only one person? Can someone still be ‘in love’ if they are alone?

Well, if love is a state of consciousness, a state of being, then logically any ‘one’ can be in this state.

Just for a moment, imagine love as a field in front of you. Now step into the field. Just stand there, in love for a minute. You’re all alone in this field, ‘in love’, with nobody else around. Enjoy being here in this beautiful place, undisturbed. You being in this field is not dependent on anyone else. You simply walked into this place of your own volition, without any help.

After a while you see a stranger walk by. They can sense that you are in love by your energy. You feel so good that they naturally feel attracted to joining you in love, so they too step into the field. Now there are two of you in love. You are in love with the stranger and the stranger is in love with you.

You decide to step out of the field, leaving the stranger in there. He is alone but still in love. He is just no longer in love with you. He does not need you to stay with him for him to remain in love although it is such a wonderful feeling that he would like to share it with someone. A short while later, another stranger passes by and feels something attracting them to this field...

The field is a place in our hearts that we can all access. Any one of us can be in love at any time and although it is always our choice whether or not we want to share that place with another, the aroma it gives off is so alluring that potential partners are drawn to it like bees to honey. Love attracts love, however being in love does not require two.

We have all felt what it means to be ‘in love’. When we walk through beautiful scenery and stop the voices in our head long enough to really appreciate the surroundings, we are in love. When we do a good deed for someone and both we and they feel good about it, we are in love. When we decide to do something that makes us feel good or proud or satisfied, we are in love. When we stop doing things that are harmful or distressing to us or others, we are in love.

When we realize that we had no choice in how we came to be the way we are and we accept ourselves and stop beating ourselves up, we are in love. When we flow with life and quietly watch what happens as it takes us on this amazing journey, we are in love. When we are actively involved with other people for the good of all, we are in love. When whatever it is we are doing makes us feel connected to our heart, we are in love. When we share our heart with another, we are in love. When every situation and every person is included and welcomed, we are in love.

We all remember that place. Perhaps some of us haven’t visited it for a while or we have become so bogged down with everyday matters that we have forgotten what it feels like, but we all recall how it feels. Something that good and natural never gets forgotten.

Being in love is achievable without any outside help, without an intimate partner. Yet, when we are in it, it is impossible to be on our own for very long, because deep down everyone else wants to be in there with us too. Go on, take the plunge, step into the field... and watch as passing strangers begin to appear in your life.

Next: Stepping Back Into The Known