Thursday, July 7, 2015
Love is love. We all know the feeling of having our hearts wide open, spacious, calm and happy. We can all experience the feelings of love when we think about or engage with our children, grandchildren, sibling, spouse, friend, pet or when we listen to an incredible piece of music or watch a sun setting.
Our hearts expand and our bodies feel good. We feel great when we feel love.
Hatred has the opposite effect. When we are hateful our bodies contract and we are in a state of stress that can encourage the production hormones that can cause us to feel tired, disconnected, anxious, alone etc.
I think we can all agree that love is a much more positive and powerful emotion to be experiencing. When we are in the presence of someone who is loving and kind we immediately feel good and pick up on their energy. Those are the people we want to hang out with a lot.
This is why I have never understood why some people have a hard time with same sex marriages. Love is love whether you are heterosexual or homosexual. Love is the same feeling whether you are in love with a man or a woman.
I’m writing about this because my friends and I were looking through brochures the other night considering destinations for a weekend getaway.
We were looking through beautiful pamphlets about Prince Edward County and reminiscing about past trips we have had down there cycling, on yoga retreats and camping. We have always loved going there.
What grabbed our attention on the brochure was the statement on the back that said “One of the top 10 gay friendly destinations.”
The statement sparked a lengthy discussion amongst my friends. We had lots of questions and thoughts. Immediately we wondered who made the decision to put that on the brochure and how did they get the designation (we since found out online). We wondered how important this designation is for gay people.
Does that make them more likely to travel there? We wondered if our county is perceived as gay friendly? We certainly think it is, and hope that gay people feel that way. We talked about the message that the youth in the communities of Prince Edward County get when they see that their businesses and tourism operators welcome gay people. It is a pretty loud message that the county is an inclusive one to live in.
I don’t know about you, but I know when I go on vacation I am always happier when I am in community that is obviously loved and well cared for, and one that takes care of its youth, seniors and people of all backgrounds.
There are a million beautiful places to visit in the world. I hope Haliburton County is perceived as one that is full of love for everyone!