Loving yourself is empowering! Making anybody else responsible for you feeling loved, making you feel loved and looking for it outside of yourself is disempowering. ONLY by loving yourself you grow to be independent.
I am sure that most of you have noticed that almost every time you switch on the radio you will most likely hear a song that talks about some kind of co-dependent love. There are THOUSANDS of songs out there!
Just a few examples here, how about “Diana Ross & Lionel Richie” – “My Endless Love” or “Celine Dion – “I’m everything I am because you loved me” and what about “Michael Bolton” – “Tell me how I am supposed to live without you”. YIKES! Who is going to believe that? Certainly not me!
Don’t we all have the right to choose and to define our own boundaries in this area?
When I was quite young, I tried avoiding hugging whenever it was possible and that even includes family gatherings.
How little did I know – I wasn’t even old enough to consider what situations may transpire before I hug a…boy. And hugging girls? No chance. Just forget it!
Years and years later I learned to enjoy the openness, the honesty of embracing the once you love, family, friends and yes, even the once who “needed” it – no matter if male or female. Even if only for a few minutes, most of the time hugs are a non-sexual way of joining, of supporting, of giving and receiving, of becoming one.
For sure, there are different kinds of hugs, just as there are without doubt many kinds of different kisses. It all depends on the intention. There are hugs and kisses, hot passionate clinches or a squeeze of someone’s shoulder and even just friendly pats on the back. A-Frames, melding hugs, quick hugs and hugs that stay with you for longer… and make you sigh…and there are also some of us who love hugging trees (me included). The hug is a form of for example caring, connection, greeting, farewell, affection, affirmation, gratitude, very different from culture to culture.
For some of us hugging requires a leap of faith, an act of courage. They are quick to reach out and offer one of these handshakes that range from the tepid fingertip hold to iron grasp…well, at a distance anyway. For reasons of their own some of us stay uncomfortable with hugging in particular when it comes to the opposite (or same for that matter) gender.
Sometimes, a hug is all what we need and not so long ago “Juan Mann” conducted a daring experiment offering “Hugs for Free”. It was his sole mission to reach out, hug a stranger and brighten up their lives. In these days of social disconnectivity and lack of human contact, the effects of the Free Hugs campaign became phenomenal.
I am sure that most have watched the video, but for those that haven’t, witness the true spirit of humanity coming together in what can only be described as awe inspiring.
A very touching VIDEO – makes me realise just how fortunate I am – to have the lifestyle I have
Ryan Estrada is an Adventurer and from what I can tell, an amazing Human Being. His website features videos of his MISSIONS – which are set by his viewers.
Ryan’s viewers send him on missions, and he travels the world solving them. They can be specific missions, vague missions, dangerous missions, ridiculous missions, whatever you can dream up. So far he has had to kiss a rat, hike through the Himalayas, interview a bandit, hang out at a leper colony, and many other things he never thought he would do.
In this video – his mission is to “bring joy to a child labourer”
Every week, somewhere in the world, I solve a mission sent one of my viewers. One of my missions was “bring joy to a child laborer”, so I meet a small boy with two blind parents who must shine shoes to support his family, and try to make his day.
The Ryan Estrada Expeditions is a weekly adventure show where I travel the world completing whatever missions people send me on. Some are serious, like this one, some are silly, and others are just ridiculous. Check them out here, or at http://www.ryanestrada.com/expeditions
Yesterday in a conversation with my close friend the word LOVE kept coming up.
“Love, what is it anyway?”
We agreed that love couldn’t really be measured by anything or be seen and as it is an exceptional force, it has the power to transform anyone’s life in a blink of an eye.
Everyone needs love and it can equally be given to anyone – the rich as well as the poor, regardless of age, gender, race or physical ability. There is enough available and we can give it freely to all.
Much of our time we waste on things instead of the people we love as well as missing the chance to express it. We have regrets – but we can’t turn back the clock.
How about showing someone you feel love for in your heart (in the best way you know how) that you love them?
Robert Lund has done it again. This video montage ia a parody of Nena’s “99 Luftballons” (99 Red Balloons), which I am sure you all know. Lyrics by M. Spaff Sumsion.
Can you think of any other names for boobs? Or maybe you even have a nickname. Go on, let me in on your secret.
I was a very happy man. My wonderful girlfriend
and I had been dating for over a year, and so we
decided to get married. There was only one
little thing bothering me…It was her beautiful
younger sister.
My prospective sister-in-law was twenty-two, wore very
tight miniskirts, and generally was bra-less. She
would regularly bend down when she was near
me, and I always got more than a nice view. It had to
be deliberate. Because she never did it when she was
near anyone else.
One day her ‘little’ sister called and asked me to
come over to check the wedding invitations. She was
alone when I arrived, and she whispered to me that she
had feelings and desires for me that she couldn’t
overcome. She told me that she wanted me just once
before I got married and committed my life to her sister.
Well, I was in total shock, and couldn’t say a word.
She said, ‘I’m going upstairs to my bedroom, and if
you want one last wild fling, just come up and get me.’
I was stunned and frozen in shock as I watched her go
up the stairs. I stood there for a moment, then turned
and made a beeline straight to the front door. I
opened the door, and headed straight towards my car.
Lo and behold, my entire future family was standing
outside, all clapping!
With tears in his eyes, my father-in-law hugged me and
said, ‘We are very happy that you have passed our
little test. We couldn’t ask for a better
man for our daughter. Welcome to the family.’
