We started this Take A Pause session on 15 September with a question for the community:
What does “Quiet Love” mean to you?
And the keywords poured in:
“Non-judgemental acceptance”
“Peace and contentment”
“Action and not words”
“Self-love”
“Stillness and deep prayer”
“Unconditional compassion”
“A willingness to support”
“No expectations of return”
“Love that you can feel”
“Small, kind gestures”
“Relaxing into what is”
…
There is, of course, no one answer, and is up to our own interpretation.
Quiet Love to me is wholesome, nourishing, and spacious. I feel at home with this kind of love. It is gentle and enduring, less about passion, and more about support.
When we pay attention, we can observe Quiet Love all around us - an elderly couple silently sipping tea together, a parent listening compassionately to their child, when we are just sitting and being with our pet, and even when fellow commuters acknowledge one another’s presence and show thoughtfulness during a busy train ride.
“It needs to be practiced, not professed.”
— Brené Brown on “Love”
Meditation, in particular, is a kind of Quiet Love, when we intentionally slow down, and rest in stillness and silence.
We pay gentle, non-judgemental attention to our thoughts, feelings, and body sensations. We show patience towards ourselves, even amidst distractions and discomfort. We honour the importance of just being ourselves, and being with our experience in each moment. We offer ourselves compassion as we acknowledge our struggles without any harshness.
In this Take A Pause session, I invited the TAP community to contemplate Quiet Love with me — we practiced body awareness, followed by self-compassion, and offering loving kindness to ourselves and someone with whom we would like to share more quiet love.
We then closed the session with sharing a poem by Beau Taplin, titled “I Have Found With You A Quiet Love”.
Meditation Begins: 09:16
Reading Begins: 26:02
Meditation Duration: 17 minutes
I Have Found With You A Quiet Love
I have found with you a Quiet Love.
One grounded not in need, but in care and in tenderness.
One that listens before it rises up to speak.
One that does not strike out or retreat in the face of new challenge,
but instead welcomes the lesson and opportunity for growth.
Yours is a love that is both selfless and patient.
One that gives without thought of what it might receive in return —
It is through You my heart at last, have learned.
that it is not in fire, but the calm, gentle quiet that True Love makes its home.
More Take A Pause Practices:
A Few Nuggets of Wisdom:
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