where is the love?

In addition to Dolly Parton and Peter, Paul, and Mary, most dogs love the Black Eyed Peas. Today, I can’t get this song out of my head… I’ll post it here so you can listen whilst reading:

“If you never know Truth, then you’ll never know love,” is one of my favorite lines. How true! As you’ve probably noticed in my previoius blog posts, dogs like me pay a lot of attention to the messages communicated that claim to be “truth” to me. Have you ever met a truly unhappy person? Have you ever been through a dark time of unhappiness yourself?

Part of the answer to finding the love is finding the Truth. Question what you’re believing; question whether it is true! Perhaps some of your unhappiness is based in untrue messages about the way the world works or how things “ought” to be. Perhaps you might even have an unbalanced version of how you “ought” to be. If I would have held to the belief that all good dogs have four legs, then where would I be now? I’d probably think of myself as useless or worthless; I’d probably base my decisions about how I think about who I am–my worth and my value in this world– on the untruth that a three-legged dog is less than worthy.

And I bet I wouldn’t love myself like I do now. So, where is the love? Where is your love? What are the truths that you’re believing, and how do they influence who you love and why? I hope you love yourself, I really do… and I hope you love others, too, I really do. The next time your find yourself in a dark, unhappy, or unloving position, don’t beat yourself up. Instead, ask yourself, “What version of truth is affecting my beliefs and feelings?– is it really true?– and whose truth is it?”