Love Stories Never Grow Old

My daughter loves the movie, The Sound of Music. In fact, it was the very first real movie she watched. We have watched it over and over and over. Over the years she has asked different questions about the story depending on what sparks her curiosity at the time. Not until now has she been a bit confused and now curious about the part where the Von Tramp family flees Austria to seek refuge and freedom from the Nazi army. I don't have a good explanation for why they have to runaway from their home, and why those men are chasing them with such determination and force. I was confronted with the same challenge when we participated in a demonstration on MLK day. She didn't understand the emotion behind it. 

I am at a loss on how to explain these issues to her.

Hate, discrimination and separation is learned behavior; is past on from one generation to the next. I choose to not teach my daughter about these things. I choose to do the best I can to hold the space for her to love herself and her fellow humans. She is the future. If I can teach her to hold her light strong and expand her capacity to love, maybe when she is confronted with acts of violence and separation she will only know the power of love. And Love is always stronger than fear. 

We are ALL affected by every action, every thought on the planet whether we are asleep or awake.  

Gandhi said, "If you want real peace in the world, start with the children." 

It starts right here. Right now. At home.

Let's change the story. Love stories never grow old.

Minutes before we sat down to watch The Sound of Music for the 100th time. Ash wrote in her tiny little notebook. And than read it out loud to me. It went something like this, "If you can forgive, than everyone can forgive. If you can love, every heart can love. Love never dies."  My eyes welled up. My heart melted. I don't know where this came from. How does she understand forgiveness? Maybe she is feeling the vibration of what is happening right now in the world. And maybe, just maybe, she is feeling a higher frequency of collective souls that are feeling those same hopeful words.

I am feeling it too. I am nauseous and at a loss for words and a loss of what to do. 

My heart keeps telling me to pray. To find others to pray with. To infuse the ether with love and forgiveness.

Love does not have to be taught. Its a natural state. Its a birthright. 

We just have to let it Be.