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Love doesn’t make the world go ‘round’; love is what makes the ride worthwhile. ~ Franklin P. Jones
How can we lead a more heart-centered life?
With the relentless pressures of work, and challenges of day-to-day life combined with the fearful, negative headlines in the media – remembering to “live from the heart” seems like a daunting task.
There are some people who live their lives from the heart. These “heart-centered” people seem to possess certain characteristics – a courageous and positive attitude, the ability to see both sides of the story, and an almost palpable enthusiasm for life.
How do they do it? I think it’s all in the small stuff. An appreciation for nature; a genuine affinity for people; the desire to help others; staying in touch with your emotions – or your own “heart” and the staunch protection of what keeps you on course in your life, be it family, faith, hope or charity. But creating a truly fulfilled life really seems to come down to one thing – and that is love.
Sometimes, I am reminded of the beauty of leading a heart-centered life by an ordinary, every day occurrence. Like when you meet a heart-centered person at a gathering of friends who just “blows you away” and you leave with a renewed sense of what’s really important. Or maybe it’s an inspiring movie…
Recently I saw a very moving film called Where God Left his Shoes.
Similar in feel to the heart-wrenching Will Smith movie The Pursuit of Happyness, Where God Left His Shoes tells the story of an ex-boxer, artfully played by John Leguizamo. Frank Diaz is married with two children – the product of his young wife’s previous relationship – and to say he is down on his luck would be the biggest understatement imaginable. Although he is clearly not skilled or particularly smart, he portrays a steadfast and loving husband and father – one that takes the time to show that he cares.
Frank fought in the Gulf War when he was 18, never learned to read and write and did what he knew best for a living – boxing. But when he loses a high-profile fight and then gets cut from his next moneymaking match, he decides enough is enough.
Since the fights are his sole source of income, Frank has to get a job or face financial ruin – but what happens next seems like hellish punishment. The unraveling begins on Halloween, when the family gets evicted from their apartment and end up at a homeless shelter.
What follows is the stuff that makes your stomach turn; bad luck follows more bad luck and the tale weaves its way around New York City at Christmas – and keeps the viewer firmly planted on an emotional roller-coaster.
Frank, as honest and hard working as he is, just can’t seem to get a break. He is met with prejudice, cold-hearted reactions and the bitter reality of modern day indifference. He makes ridiculous choices and foolish mistakes. Yet still, we root for him.
At one point, Frank’s “mini-man” stepson, who is tough-talking and smarmy, surprises Frank when he openly weeps and asks his stepfather why he doesn’t ever tell him he loves him. Frank lets him know that the head butts, the wrestling, and more “macho” displays of affection are “code” to let him know he is, indeed, loved.
Throughout the movie you keep hoping Frank will get out of the mess that just keeps getting incredulously worse by the minute. But it doesn’t happen.
Yes, Frank does terribly stupid things and the outcome is inconceivable, but there is an important message: One word: LOVE. The overriding, ubiquitous gift – that, even when life hands us lemons, the “lemonade” is love. It shows us all that through everything; the horrific pain and suffering of poverty, the gut-wrenching ache of rejection and prejudice, or the sting of failure; that there is one magnificent constant – and that must be, and is, love.
Tags: happiness, heart-centered, love