Love in Motion

I recently had occasion to draw upon my limited knowledge of Sir Isaac Newton’s, third law of motion, for every action there is an equal and opposite reaction, to discuss the physics and mechanics involved in an acute, catastrophic medical case. Following that discussion I took some time to read about Sir Isaac Newton. I came to appreciate that he was inspired becasue he saw something in life that was bigger than his explanation, something that challenged his reality. As a result of his observation, intelligence and discovery, his three laws of motion became fundamental building blocks of the modern science revolution.

Newton was concerned with science as he knew it; but, his work crosses boundaries and influences my study of social sciences, specifically the science happiness. As I consider his laws of motion in the context of resistance to change, the impact of force and action vs. reaction analysis, I have a framework to begin to understand what might be the cause of individual resistance to positive change and what steps might be taken to encourage positive change.

Newtown’s third law of motion provides an action/reaction formula to analyze how energy in motion behaves. He states for every action there is an equal and opposite reaction. Love is positive energy. When it is put in motion, love acts upon an object and the result is a transfer of energy creating a return reaction that nurtures the soul of the giver. Alhtough this reaction is itself quite wonderful, perhaps the greater phenomena plays out as the consequences of love's positive energy begin to unravel with the passing of time.

Carl Jung maintains, at the time of birth the human psyche contains the seed and potentiality for growth and development. This idea has been refered to as the unfolding of the soul. Over the course of a lifetime, our souls naturally unfold and develop as we nurture our potential in a purposeful manner.

When we put love in motion by planting seeds of kindness, compassion, gratitude and empathy, not only do we nurture and grow our own potential and capacity to love; but also, we nurture the potential seeds in other individuals so that their capacity to love may grow and expand exponentially. The miracle is that love grows and expands exponentially when it is given away. Love is a source of happiness to both the giver and the receiver.

If we know that love in motion expands exponentially and is the source of happiness, why do waste so much time and energy nurturing illusions when everything around us tells us there is so much more to life? Why do we chase happiness if we carry the seeds of happiness within? Why do we suffer needlessly when we can choose another way?

Most of us come into this world and are surrounded by love. Instinctively we learn that love feels good, love makes us happy. When we cry, we are soothed, fed and taken care of. All our needs are met; and, as they are being met we enjoy the fruits of someone else’s love. Our early experiences teach us that love is received as we take it from someone else. We are body at rest. We are inert, content in our reality. Newtons' first law of motion suggests a body at rest will remain at rest until it is acted upon by an outside force that leaves it unbalanced. As it is acted upon, the body at rest will try to resist being put in motion.

As young children, we are by nature egocentric. We become accustomed to everyone else giving and doing for us and we are happy to take what is being offered. Our reality is that love is something taken, as it is received from someone else, and that makes us feel happy. When our childhood reality, our concept of love is challenged, we feel confused, hurt and upset. We become unbalanced and we resist.

Consider the first time a child is scolded by a parent because he does not share a toy. Of course he does not understand what has happened. The toy was given to him by someone who loves him. Taking the toy from the parent made the child feel happy. He felt loved. Now that parent wants the child to allow someone else to take the toy from him. This makes the child feel sad. Why? Because, his reality, his concept of love is under assault. He is being pushed to change, he feels unbalanced and he resists the attack. This resistance causes anxiety, frustration and suffering.

As adults, if we want to form healthy relationships with ourselves and others, we must let go of the attitude of love being something that is taken and held onto. Carl Jung suggests, “The first half of life is devoted to forming a healthy ego, the second half is going inward and letting go of it.” Newton’s second law of motion explains that acceleration is produced when a force acts upon mass. The greater the mass the more energy of force needed to cause acceleration. If our attachments to false realities and dysfunctional thinking are weighing us down, we will require a significant amount of energy or work to let go of these attachments in order to begin moving forward.

The starting point of happiness is abandoning the idea of love that takes and learning how wonderful it is to give. True love is love that gives; and, it is the kind of love that gives without expectation of return or reward. Love that gives is happiness because it is not conditioned on the love that we receive from others. Elbert Hubbard explains. “Love grows by giving. The love we give away is the only love we keep. The only way to retain love is to give it away. “

I am intrigued and inspired by the idea of anonymous giving. For the woman who gives anonymously, her joy is full with the act of giving. She desires no recognition or reward. In fact, she avoids the possibility of being discovered. She does not want the receiver to feel there is an unspoken expectation of reciprocity. It really is a bit of a riddle--giving to others anonymously is a gift she gives herself. She understands that giving anonymously is a similitude of giving unconditional love-the true source of happiness.

The following story captures beautifully the concept of giving love unconditionally.

Once upon a time, there was a man who used to go to the ocean to do his writing. He had a habit of walking on the beach before he began his work.

One day, as he was walking along the shore, he looked down the beach and saw a human figure moving like a dancer. He smiled to himself at the thought of someone who would dance to the day, and so, he walked faster to catch up.

As he got closer, he noticed that the figure was that of a child, and that what he was doing was not dancing at all. The child was reaching down to the shore, picking up small objects, and throwing them into the ocean.

He came closer still and called out “Good morning! May I ask what it is that you are doing?”

The child paused, looked up, and replied “Throwing starfish into the ocean.”

“I must ask, then, why are you throwing starfish into the ocean?” asked the somewhat startled man.

To this, the child replied, “The sun is up and the tide is going out. If I don’t throw them in, they’ll die.”

Upon hearing this, the man commented, “But, young man, do you not realize that there are miles and miles of beach and there are starfish all along every mile? You can’t possibly make a difference!”

At this, the child bent down, picked up yet another starfish, and threw it into the ocean. As it met the water, he said, “I made a difference for that one.”

Kind acts of love leave beautiful markings etched on the human soul. Love has the ability to soften hearts and to heal the wounds of discontent. Each day we have the opportunity to dance along our own beach offering kindness, compassion and love. We may be the blessing that someone is praying for. What we do makes a difference. Always remember love in motion expands exponentially and the fruits of love are infinite.

#love #beauty #inspiration #sirissaccnewton #brotations