Thank you very much for your beautiful and very interesting description of how you think love works. I see love a little bit differently to you, although this does not mean that your ideas are not right. It is fine for each of us to have different ideas about things and very nice to be able talk about them.
I think there is only one love. Bob Marley sang a song about it! It fills the whole universe. It is constant and eternal (ever lasting). It connects every person and every living thing. The reason why it seems to us that there are different kinds of love or levels of love is because at different times we are more or less aware of our connection with this one love.
When we are with a person with whom it is obvious that we are connected, like a member of our family, it is easier for us to feel our connection to love. If we connect with someone by hugging them often, then it is also easier to feel our connection to love. Some people who we meet in life seem to allow us to feel our connection with love more easily than others. We find those people attractive and want to be their friends or perhaps their girlfriend / boyfriend. Often we say to each other 'I really connected with him or her'. Some people think that we have 'soul mates'. They think they are perhaps souls who we know from past lives, and that when we meet a soul mate in this life, there is an instant recognition and connection that can be felt deep inside us. I am not sure whether this is true, but it does seem to be the case that we feel our connection to love more with certain people than with others. It may be just that they happen to be like us and have things in common with us.
There are many other ways in which we can feel our connection with love. We can do it alone. Whenever we stop thinking for a moment and just feel, then love is always there. We can do this by listening to some great music, dancing, playing a fun game, looking at beautiful flowers, or tasting delicious ice cream. Some people like to do meditation, which helps them to quieten their thinking so that they can feel their connection to love.
Just like you get better at playing the piano by practicing it, you can get better at loving by practicing loving. Dance and sing often. Take time to stop and look at beautiful flowers or to really enjoy the taste of ice-cream. Sit quietly and still from time to time and feel your breath going in and out, in and out. Hug your mum and dad often and anyone else you feel like hugging! Spend lots of time enjoying playing with good friends. Do things to help people you don't know without wanting something in return, maybe without even letting them know it was you who did it. Think of every person and every living creature you see as a part of your family. Even if they do something you don't like, love them anyway, just as you still love your mum and dad even if they have to tell you off sometimes.
The more you practice these things, the more you will feel the love that you describe as coming from 'the whole heart'. Just like learning the piano, the more you love, the better you will become at loving.
Much love to you, Ruby and please write to me again!
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