National Loving Day.

 National Loving Day.

It's easy to forget about the true meaning of our lives, our raison d'etre, that there is a point and purpose to everything, that there is a unifying and binding force that keeps us together. There is a reason for togetherness and harmony, family and friends, that special person who always rallies around you when things become tough and almost unbearable, who drop everything and exert the most beneficial and positive influence on our every day outlook.

Love does and should always make the world go around. It has done so since the beginning of time and for as long as anybody can remember. It is celebrated in film, books, all manner of literature, in the unlikeliest and most improbable circumstances but always there for you, supportive, influential, faithful, sincere and deeply impactful. It can be expressed in a multitude of ways that perhaps we take for granted. It doesn't require a great deal of effort and should be instinctive wherever we are in the world. 

Today folks it's National Loving Day. But why should ever need to be reminded about the meaning of love, the heartfelt emotion of love, the recognition of love with the giving of presents and gifts on birthdays and anniversaries, the way we look, talk, our connection to the people who mean the world to us and the family we could always rely on and trust? It's a given, of course it is. But then maybe we knew that anyway. It doesn't really need any confirmation since it has to be hard wired into our existence from the moment we wake up in the morning to that time our heads hit the pillow and we drift off to sleep. 

So what is it about love that acts as our inspiration when we need it most? Love is there to comfort and console us when we lose a loved one, when the day goes horribly wrong, when disaster strikes with a vengeance and all hope is seemingly lost. We remember the times when our late and lovely mum and dad took us to the park and watched us spinning around on a roundabout as kids or took us to the slides and swings, tucking us comfortingly into bed and kissed us goodnight. 

But this was unconditional love and of course our parents were our formative tourist guides when it came to growing up, learning all about the fundamental rules and regulations, acknowledging with politeness the goodwill bestowed on us by uncles, aunties, cousins, brothers and sisters. Love has been penned and written in a million songs, romantic songs, vinyl records, demonstrative boy and girl bands, music of the most diverse and memorable kind, love songs that are sad, poignant, genuine, reassuring and powerful. 

Music of course, as one famous scribe once remarked, is indeed the food of love. We stare across at each other in candle lit restaurants full of warm intimacy and with tender feelings from the heart. We propose to each other when we're in love, we may just decide to pop around to see you on a flying visit. We did hear that you weren't feeling well and just thought we'd see how you were getting on despite our illness, those nagging ailments that refuse to go away. 

At the moment, the world does indeed need, almost urgently, in some parts of the world, a superabundance of affection, a huge outpouring of compassion and unquestioning sympathy and solicitude. In Ukraine and Israel, there has to be love and understanding, a willingness to lend a helping hand when we're in dire need of love, desperate to hear soothing voices that ooze positivity and the most extravagant generosity of spirit. 

So then we think back to those precious days when babies are born and new life introduced into the world, the next generation. We cradle them in white blankets, showering them with maternal and paternal love, love from grandparents and great grandparents. For this is the way it should always be. Love should never be disguised or hidden away because it is at that point that our communication with the people who should be vitally important, is rendered pointless and superficial. 

Whether it be with boxes of chocolates, the most colourful of flowers or potted plants, the heroic and benevolent deeds we perform with fulsome sincerity, love comes wrapped up in the most ornate ribbons and bows, messages and glad tidings from the other side of the world in some cases. We love the company of strangers who just happen to want nothing more than a smile or laugh, an evocative word or conversation capable of changing our day for the better in seconds. So go on everybody. It's National Loving Day. We love the unity, camaraderie, good humour and bonhomie of family because they are our permanent friends, essential sources of motivation, the people who always make us feel good about ourselves. Happy National Loving Day everybody.