It's February, and love is in the air... well, a version of love anyway, in flower shops, jewelry stores and television commercials. Those of us who don't indulge in Valentine's Day consumerism might choose to interpret this holiday as an opportunity to do our personal heart work, not for the purpose of attracting or maintaining romantic love, but to connect with Divine Love and to recognize the many ways it expresses itself to us. 

Romantic relationships would be so much easier if we saw them as representations of our soul's desire to reconnect with a spiritual sense of Home. Instead of striving to fulfill the ego's need for comfort and the illusion of safety, our partners actually have a much more important assginment... to show us that the ego can never feel at home or find true safety... only the soul can do that. And that safety is not found in marital obligations, physical objects or our social identities. It can only be found by recognizing ourselves as part of the collective, unified  consciousness that some call "God," but I prefer to call "Home." 

When we recognize every person and every encounter as a holy teacher that delivers powerful gifts of growth, our hearts begin to open to oneness. And when that opening occurs, we can experience life on earth with wonder rather than fear, curiosity rather than resistance, and gratitude rather than hopelessness. 

Terri Daniel  

President, The Afterlife Education Foundation 

End-of-Life Advisor, Interfaith Chaplaincy, 

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