Fete Lifestyle Magazine August 2016 Heroes Issue | Page 50

Is it really so unattainable? We all have a choice in how we live our lives. What if we made love a practice. Just as yoga is a practice or honing your skills at anything, we all know that “practice” is what allows things to become easier or even second nature. It is far too easy to rush to judgement, criticize or react.

I’m sure you have

heard that everyone

in all walks of life,

at some point in life

struggles with something.

If you make the choice

to work love into your

daily practice you have

the opportunity to

have a positive impact

on everyone you encounter.

Not to expect perfection in

demonstrating love, but

awareness of how you respond

to others, showing compassion'

for others and taking opportunities

to give another person the benefit of the

doubt. Maybe if we knew everyone’s full story,

we would understand and feel compassion. How

much more peaceful would it be to live in community with people who did give each other the benefit of the doubt and practiced compassion toward one another?

This is what makes love such a hero’s journey. When people show compassion, patience and concern for others, it creates connection and community. We have all seen how people can pull together in the midst of tragedy, but we don’t need to wait for that tragedy to be loving. We could be this way every day.

How can you incorporate a loving approach to your daily life? The first step is to be aware of the story you tell yourself. A simple example of this is something small, like getting cut off in traffic. How do you respond? Do you get angry? What

do you tell yourself about getting cut off? What we tell ourselves has everything to do with how we respond. If we tell ourselves that we are being disrespected, we will most likely feel angry or upset.