The Love Month
I call February the Love Month. Expanding from the anticipation of Valentine’s Day, I wake up each day of February thinking of someone or something I love. That leads me to look at how I love- love with laugher, love with remembrance, love with tenderness, love with yearning, love with fierce protectiveness, love with honor. I could add more ways of loving. And so could you, I’m sure.
One of my femaie heroes is Maya Angelou. Her life was filled with struggles – financial, emotional, and physical pain. She got through each day and used her words to influence, inspire, encourage, laugh, and love.
I regret that I never met her in person but have read her books and listened to many recordings. Her voice remained strong, yet silky. My mantra of “Words are Powerful” certainly applies to her words. Visual, expressive, humorous, clear, brave. Her voice, whether speaking, reciting, or singing, added power to her words.
Some Favorite Maya Angelou Quotes on Love
Her words about love have replayed in my head and heart for many years. Love. Love life. Give love, Share love:
Love is like a virus. It can happen to anybody at any time.
Love recognizes no barrier.It jumps hurdles, leaps fences, penetrates walls to arrive at its destination full of hope. ~
My great hope is to laugh as much as I cry; to get my work done and try to love somebody and have the courage to accept the love in return.
I’ve learn that people will forget what you said, people will forgive what you did, but people will never forget how you made them feel.
I am grateful to have been loved and to be loved now and to be able to love, because love liberates. Love liberates- it doesn’t just hold; that’s ego. Love liberates!
“Be a Rainbow in Someone Else’s Cloud.” Click on the title and take a listen. What a treat.
Who and what do you love?
Ethel Lee-Miller blogs regularly about people, the power of words, and her writing life. She retired after 30 years of teaching, and semi-retired from coaching, and professional editing. Founder of the Eastside Tucson Writing Room based in Tucson AZ, she’s posted 100s of blogs, and is the author of Thinking of Miller Place, and Seedlings, Stories of Relationships. These days she writes to inspire, to connect with folks, teaching about the power of words, gather writers together, and for the pure enjoyment of it. Ethel enjoys teaching, speaking, and storytelling at Odyssey Storytelling, Artists Standing Strong Together, Tucson Tellers of Tales, Center for Spiritual Living Tucson, New Story Pod, and anywhere there’s a mic or a Zoom room.