 "Relationship
Advice for Opening to Love"
By Susie and Otto Collins
For the past two weeks, we've been dog-sitting for our friends'
fun-loving, gentle, yellow Labrador retriever (Nutmeg) and
we're
having a ball with her.
We've been taking Nutmeg on long walks on our city's bike
path and playing catch in the river with balls and sticks.
As we've gone on these excursions, we've noticed a wide variety
of reactions to the dog from the people we meet.
A few days ago on the bike path, we walked past two young
children on bicycles and their grandfather. They were all
excited to pet Nutmeg and she was equally excited to get
their love and attention. "Nut" has never met a
stranger.
Several other people walked or ran by us without a glance
our way. One man skirted the other side of the paved path
as we passed and was obviously very afraid of Nutmeg. He asked
us in a low voice as he quickly passed, "Does the dog
bite?"
When we thought about his question, as well as the various
ways that people reacted to our adopted dog--what a mirror
for how we all look at relationships and life so differently!
Some of us are open and friendly to strangers, as well as
to those we love. Some of us largely ignore those we meet
and those closest to us--and stay in our own little world.
Some of us are very frightened of opening to others and keep
ourselves closed off.
We've observed that these differences seem to come from our
beliefs and our past experiences--and not so much from what's
happening in our present.
So, this week, we invite you to notice how you react to your
loved ones and how you react to strangers.
Do you keep yourself very busy doing "things" so
you don't have to interact with people--either strangers or
your loved ones?
Are you open to stopping, making eye contact and listening
to your loved ones or even people you meet?
Are you fearful of opening to something new with your partner
or even with people you haven't met?
Becoming aware of our reactions can show us where and how
we need to grow next. The important thing is to notice what
we do to keep ourselves separate and then decide if we want
the possibility of more joy and love in our lives--and open
to it.
Opening to the possibility of love, whether you are in a long-term
relationship or not, can be a scary proposition because of
habits, beliefs and past experiences.
It may take some courage to say "no" to these habits
and try something different--if you want more love in your
life.
We suggest that you choose some way that
you'd like to open to more joy in your life this
week.
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Relationship coaches Susie and Otto Collins,
authors of "Should You Stay or Should You Go?" and "No More
Jealousy" are experts at helping people get more of the love
they really want. Learn the 5 keys to a closer, more loving
relationship, click below for your free 5-part mini-course:
http://www.Relationshipgold.com
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