The Well Within

We think that we love things outside of ourselves.

We think that we love people, places, objects.

We have this idea that when we encounter these things they somehow “give us” the love that we feel. We think there’s a kind of flow of love that moves from them to us. But I don’t think that’s what’s happening. I think that what they’re doing is activating the love that we ALREADY had inside ourselves.

It’s like when someone says, “Hey, you’ve got ketchup on your shirt.” It brings awareness to something you didn’t know was there all along. It was too close to notice. And so we wrongly attribute the source of our love to these people, places, and things outside of ourselves. And we spend our life clinging to them and trying to get more of these objects in our grasp. And when we fail to do so we’re miserable. And we fear death because we fear losing what we believe is the source of our love — all these external objects.

But at some point we might stumble on to the realization that there’s a switch within our reach — a switch that we can flip, whenever we want, to turn on the source of love that’s within. And oh how the love flows! The source within really does seem infinite. You can feel the highest of any love you’ve ever felt toward just about anything: a cool breeze, a morning coffee, a friend or a foe, a family member or a stranger, sunshine or rain. And then the objects don’t matter anymore. Whatever is put in front of you, you find you’re able to feel love toward.

And then you realize something.

You ARE love.

Love is not coming from the outside in but you yourself ARE love, and you’re shining from the inside out onto whatever is in front of you.

So perhaps today, instead of telling the people in your life that you love them, you might thank them instead. Thank them for connecting you to the source of love within. Thank them for reminding you that you ARE love. Hopefully you can do the same for them.

Where do you turn to learn how to live? If you’re like me, you might turn to books. Or mentors. Or podcasts. You might engage in philosophical discourse with friends, family, and colleagues. You might lean into the onslaught of research and studies conducted on the topics of happiness, meaning, and life satisfaction. You might reflect through the practice of journaling. These can all be useful...

Where do you live? To answer that question you might give me a location. Let’s say New York. And though it may be true that you live in New York, you really live in a HOUSE in New York. Let’s say a big house. And though it may be true that you live in a big house in New York, you really live in your HEAD in your big house. You live in between the walls of your head — right there with all your...

The rougher the road, the lighter the grip. I first learned how to ride a motorcycle in Northern Thailand, mostly on bumpy, rocky, winding roads. My natural tendency on many of the bumpy dirt roads was to tighten my grip on the handlebars. The rougher the road, the harder I clenched. Until I realized that by the end of the ride my hands were in such severe pain I couldn’t even open them all the...

The evolution of mankind:
Walk walk walk, hunt, rest rest rest.
Walk walk, farm, rest rest rest.
Walk, farm farm, rest rest.
Sit, farm farm farm, rest rest.
Sit, work, rest rest.
Sit, work work, rest rest.
Sit, work work work, rest.
Sit, coffee coffee coffee, work work work, booze booze booze.

Hi there!

Start Here

Read more

Hi there!

Start Here