How to Love Series :: 2 of 17
“Getting gotten” and “being present” are essential to experiencing the power of love. These concepts are defined here for clarity.
The experience of getting gotten occurs when another is so present with you that you feel heard, seen, known, and understood for who you truly are, and know that anything you say or do is accepted as an act of love.
Being present involves a conscious act of awareness–mindfulness. It replaces automatic perceptions of situations with an actual experience of living in the moment. Mindfulness is the art of living right in the center, between past and future–it is living in the present.
Therefore, being present means being fully conscious of who you are, where you are, what you are doing, and whom you are with at that exact moment. No images of the past and no dreams of the future interrupt this awareness. There are no distractions or other places you’d rather be. Nothing else matters. Your body, mind, and heart are one.
The following excerpt from Buddhist literature is offered to illustrate being fully present–what the Buddhists call mindfulness:
A man once asked the Buddha, “What are the teachings of you and your disciples?”
Buddha answered, “We sit, we walk, and we eat.”
The man replied, “But, everyone sits, walks, and eats.”
The Buddha answered, “Yes, but when we sit, we know that we are sitting. When we walk, we know that we are walking. When we eat, we know that we are eating.”
There is nothing like the experience of being present, or the experience of getting gotten! It is the primal essence of love that permeates all life. It is so powerful it takes your breath away.
Love is–the Only Answer
Love is the answer, always and in all ways. Love is all there is, there is nothing else. Love is everywhere and all around us–self-love, love of others, and love of life. You breathe it, see it, smell it, and taste it. Seeing lovers kissing on a bridge; a mother holding her newborn; a teenager helping an older person across the street; a father teaching his child how to ride a bike. It’s about creating and experiencing life to the fullest in all its perfection and disappointments.
I believe that asking the question, what would love do right now?–in any circumstance–will expand your experience of love. For example, when you are in a situation where you feel so angry you want to explode, if you would just stop and ask yourself, “What would love do right now?” you will usually do something more loving than you would have done without asking the question. You may not do what Mother Teresa would have done, but you will do something more in alignment with who you really are. You will then be able to respond to life rather than react to it.
Asking, what would love do right now? does not mean you will become a doormat and refrain from speaking up for yourself. In fact, just the opposite will occur. As you live from your heart and love yourself deeply, you will know when to stand up for yourself and perhaps say, “No, I won’t be doing that for you anymore,” “That doesn’t work for me,” or “That’s unethical for me. I won’t be joining you.” When you come from your natural essence, then speaking your truth will become second nature.
The more you ask, what would love do right now? the more it will set you free to love again, to love completely, and to love from your heart without holding back. You can then be an example or model for others on how life can be extraordinary, fun, and expressive. Soon people may approach you and say, “You are so different. You used to be so negative and crabby. How did you do it?” They, and the people in their lives, will be so grateful if you take this opportunity to share with them your experience of asking, in any situation, “What would love do right now?”
When you feel love in your heart, you and everyone else benefits, because you have so much more love to give. It’s all about making a real difference for you, your loved ones, and all those in your life who are willing to live from a powerful foundation of love.
As you evaluate your career, relationships, finances, health, and other areas of your life, you will begin to BE LOVE, rather than love being something toward which you are striving. Bring love to a situation and notice how others around you change, because you are different.
May the wisdom inside you take you on a journey into your heart where your greatness abides. Now, that’s living a heart-centered, extraordinary life!
Love and Be Loved
Restoring love in all areas of my life make a real difference. You can read the guide to living an extraordinary life in my Amazon #1 Bestselling book–What Would Love Do Right Now?
Consider there are only two predominant things going on in your life. You either have something you don’t want (shame, blame, guilt, anger, envy, frustration, resentment, or regret). Or, you want something you don’t have.
Support is Available
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What can I expect from my session? We will identify and release negative beliefs, thoughts, feelings, behaviors, habits, and detrimental patterns that prevent you from living an extraordinary life. After your session is complete, the ability to have more love, adventure, creativity, passion, and joy is possible.
Lovingly Submitted,
Victoria Benoit, M.C.
602-864-7662
Mind/Body Repatterning Practitioner, Speaker, Bestselling Author
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