Love is ….

 

"Love is what makes you smile when you're tired" (Paulo Coelho)

 

I stumbled across the quote today. And I started to smile because the wisdom of the statement spoke to my heart. And it brought back memories.

 

Why do we smile when we look at the innocent eyes of kittens? They touch our heart, they connect us with positive vibrations.

 

Or it is a wonderful painting, colours full of energy, we feel the devotion and talent of the artist.

 

Why do we have to smile when an interesting man unexpectedly gives us an attentive look? He almost imperceptibly turns his head to the side and his gaze touches us. In the right mixture of discreet, defensive and with that very special energy in his eyes that we love so much.

 

The wonderful colours of the flowering Bougainvillea, which unfold their full beauty in the summer sunshine.

 

The power of the sea waves, which land on the beach at incoming tide in their own magical rhythm, without ever getting tired. If we take the time to devote our full attention to this natural spectacle for ten minutes, we will feel how this unbridled power becomes part of ourselves. We are filling up with the energy of nature. We are grateful and we smile.

 

Often this smile happens out of an impulse. We do not know exactly why we react this way.

 

I remember an encounter a long, long time ago, when I lived with my parents and was about to graduate from high school. On the way back home, we (my schoolmate and I) always chose the Gemarkenstraße, the main shopping street of our residential area. Retail shops of all kinds, bakeries, fashion boutiques, travel agencies, shoe shops and flower shops.

 

A man, good-looking, about my height, estimated twice as old as me, stood at his car, the trunk lid opened and he was about to unload various buckets of flower bouquets. I looked at him, it was a glance in passing, nothing more. And this man gave me such a wonderful smile, unexpected, spontaneous, broad and authentic, that at first I didn't know how to react. I suppose I smiled back shyly. And afterwards, metaphorically speaking, I danced through the day full of ease. From that day on I bought a bouquet of moss roses from him (he was the owner of a flower shop) once a week and I always felt happy when he was present. Good vibrations and a slightly increased pulse rate included.

 

I think it is people and things that touch our heart that make us smile. Which energy has the potential to touch our heart? The perfection and beauty of nature in all its facets, true feelings of other people, be it sympathy or even love, the chance encounter that enriches our lives.

 

It is the love of our soul that smiles through us, even when we are tired.

 

© Solandra (April 7th, 2020)

 

Translated with the help of DeepL

Proofread by the author