Self-Love

       “Too often we underestimate the power of a touch, a smile, a kind word, a listening ear, an honest compliment, or the smallest act of caring, all of which have the potential to turn a life around.”

                                    ~ Leo Buscaglia

Self-Love Extended

In our last blog we related how our need to be perceived in a certain way (skinny, affluent, stylish, etc.) typically occurs as a lack of self-love quietly smolders as the underlying reason. We also ventured on to explore the different ways in which we see ourselves and others, including the world as a whole, once self-love has been experienced and self-actualized.

With self-love, the feeling of oneness, acceptance and belonging becomes part of us a majority of the time. It is at this point in our life that our personal responsibility to the outside world changes!

As if the Universe has beckoned us, we know intuitively that the gift we’ve received, the realization of self-love and oneness, MUST in turn be shared on a regular basis with others. As with all things Universal in nature, it’s both as simple and profound as that.

This Story says it ALL

David Wagner wrote a book called “Daymaker” which we’ll summarize for you here in a few paragraphs. He was working in his Salon one ordinary day when one of his regular clients came in for a styling. David was surprised to see her as she was right in the middle of her time between usual visits. He asked her if she had some special evening plans.

"I don't have anything special going on," she told him. "I just want to look and feel good tonight." David, doing his job enthusiastically, gave her a great scalp massage, then shampooed and styled her hair. During their 30 minutes together, they joked and laughed, and then she smiled radiantly while hugging him good-bye.

A few days later he received a letter from this same client that abruptly made him realize the enormity of treating people with compassion, empathy and love. David’s client, in her letter, admitted that she had wanted her hair styled so it would look good for her own funeral. She had planned on committing suicide that evening. But her time with David had given her hope for the future, so instead she sought help. She wrote "thank you for being there without knowing that you were."

Goosebumps, moist eyes, spine shivers...

Look Better, Feel Better, Live Better

Go back and read the initial quote. Were you skeptical when you read it initially? Either way, boy does it have some impact now, eh? Now, realistically, are you going to directly save a life by being nice? Most likely, no, but we truly can heal the world one smile, one compliment, one hello, one held door or one pat on the back at a time.

We’ve seen movies made, like “Pay It Forward”, that illustrate the far reaching implications of random acts of kindness. Ever heard of the butterfly effect? In chaos theory, the butterfly effect is a hypothesis in which a small change at one place in a system can result in large differences in a later state.

Usually referenced in weather patterns and time travel fiction plots, the butterfly effect is perfectly exemplified in David’s “Daymaker” story, as well as in “Pay It Forward” as a social impact paradigm. Extrapolated out, here’s another social impact example: Joe makes Heidi smile at Starbucks; Heidi, a business owner, now feeling good from her interaction with Joe, in turn gives her employee Sara a raise; and as a result, Sara can now get tutoring for Sam, her special needs child. Amen to self-love and  butterflies!

PS: OK, who’s got a story to share that impacted someone’s life in a positive way. It doesn’t have to be as dramatic as the “Daymaker” story from above...hit us with a butterfly effect or a pay it forward!