By Dr. Clarice Peres and The Ethical Planet

It is with immense joy and gratitude that we started this project with Abayomi Academy of writing this monthly column. And we will do this as a team, The Ethical Planet family, composed of children, teenagers and me. All together in the same boat, sailing in shallow and deep waters talking about Ethics and Mental Health. With the enthusiasm of a child in the incredible world of neuropsychology!

It seemed that my question “what is love to you?” took almost everyone by surprise! And I was also surprised myself! Everyone, without exception, had to take a deep breath and stop their currently busy life that seems to be the standard, to think about the meaning of love. In some way, we all try our best to seek truly magnanimous and meaningful words to describe our purest feelings.

Without exception, they sighed and went on an instant journey to their inside, to faces that are familiar to their database, they went through places and situations that exalt their senses, and before giving me their inspiring answers, a serene expression and some smiles came naturally. The meditation towards love seemed to begun!

How much power has love! It seems to have taken on an even greater significance in this unprecedented current moment of pandemic where pain and death are so close. However, solidarity and compassion are reminding us of our true essence: Love. It sets us free from pain and brings us to a peaceful state of mind. We can even offer our lives for love! The poet, Jorge Amado, described it perfectly:

“Love is always sweet and good even when death is near”!

While I kept asking people what love is about, I let myself get involved by it!

Just by saying the word “Love” our body immediately requires oxygen and therefore it partially increases our heart rate, dopamine in our brain rises, our motivation elevates, blood pressure changes, our brain boosts, our attachment system turns on and we focus on our energy. Eventually, not only does our physiology change, but even our social consciousness change. Our heart lets the mind in, and our mind accepts its beat, eliminating the illusion that we are separated.

Our imagination and vocabulary intensively search for synergy. Everybody, children, teenagers, adults and elderly philosophize and believe in a feminine energy inspired by life, by giving without wanting anything in return, by generating another life, by giving from your own existence everything needed to generate another being, a force capable of generating life itself – our baby.

“Love is like a child, that longs for everything that he can come by” (William Shakespeare).

How many forms can love take? Between parents and children, between lovers, among friends, strangers, countries and nations … How much love can we give and receive? How many gestures, looks, hugs, kisses, words can express love? it is only through love we are able to understand! Pablo Neruda in his poetry full of love said:

“Knowing the love of our loved ones is the fire that nurtures life”.

It is not enough to feel love, you have to put it into practice. In order to be full, you have to act. You have to laugh and cry; you have to be whole and smiling! Love is action, art, poetry, it is beautiful and ugly, it is the dance of opposites and the alike, it is the constant change, diversity and brevity.

An action of giving, simply giving. A process of not giving up and of total surrender. The deep awareness that life is unpredictable and therefore, at any time, it is worth loving and transcending!

This action begins with the birth of ourselves in our tribe, the essence of Ubuntu, then with our friends who are the ones most similar to us, we keep exploring until we find one person who is the most similar to ourselves, and we search for it our entire life. Some said that love is sweet and that your keys must always be in our hands so that we can open all doors, it is our choice, the choice of our immortal being.

Whoever loves has to comply with some rules of this show called life: caring, empathizing, understanding, accepting, sharing, strengthening, completing, filling, calming, resisting, transforming, challenging, identifying, purifying, helping, obeying, donating, protecting, harmonizing, energizing, needing, pacifying, granting, giving, pleasing, …. But love is not tested nor measured; it just exists.

We speak in many ways about a faithful and perfect representative of this love, which can be called God, Nature or Universe. We do not speak of religion, we speak of connection, faith, integration, fusion between this unique and genuine representative of ourselves. This love that elevates us in seconds to a validation of our own existence. An explosion of energy that reminds us of our completeness. A meeting of souls, that sometimes spend more time in connection and other times are just passing through. When love speaks, the voice is silent!

You can come walking, galloping, with a breeze or a lightning. Mysterious, magical, sweet, vibrant, fluid. It covers, opens, invades, closes, revolts, turns, calms, overflows, agitates, clarifies, illuminates, rejoices, congratulates, touches, and connects ourselves and to the others where words can hardly be used to define. As if defining yourself was arresting your own freedom. Or seek an explanation for the unexplainable.

Everyone without exception said that to love is to live! Which is to be connected with the other, even if that other is yourself, but if it is with the other it makes our existence much more meaningful. Sometimes reason can speak of love in a column like this, but as we cannot explain love rationally, it does not fit in other forms of explanation other than love itself.

Shakespeare said: “Love is the only madness of a wise man and the only wisdom of a fool”!

So, is love ourselves? And if so, can it mean everything we are, all of our infinite capacity for expansion and expression? Love can be everything – our air, our superhero, all the colours that exist. It can be intense to the point of stopping your mind. Nothing can be better than this: self-love, love one another, love life, love that comes and goes, love that moves the world!

“What do you want me to tell you besides I love you!” (Fernando Pessoa).

Authors: Daniel Rocha Rabelo, 5 years old student, he loves the ocean and watching videos and Dr. Clarice Peres, psychologist, writer, and sailor.

Source: Ahhhhhhh LOVE – blog/publicacao – Abayomi Academy