Photo by Nick Fewings on Unsplash
Welcome here!
Last Driftwood and Grace newsletter we gave the invitation to consciously cultivate gratitude for even the smallest of blessings, and in so doing to discover that no blessing is truly small in Deep Gratitude - Living Into Conscious Thankfulness
Check it out here if you missed it.
And now to today. My title of today’s newsletter may sound a touch forward or may conjure all manner of unintended images. But kisses in the sheets is actually a personal ritual that I’ve done all of our marriage, not when I’m in bed, rather when I am making our bed.
An Invitation
Today I invite you to share in a ritual of cultivating loving connection.
Each day after my husband and I have each started our day, when I am making our bed, as I fold back the top sheet I place a kiss on the sheet below and gently cover it with the top sheet.
As I do so, depending which side of the bed I’m on, I say one of the following: “Love you Amor” or “Love you Melly”. Then I go to the other side of the bed and do the same.
Amor, is “Love” in Spanish which is how my husband and I often refer to each other, and “Melly” is one of the names I call myself.
It’s something I have done all of our marriage, and mostly, I am the only person who ever sees it. My husband was quite touched when he realised I do this, but when I reflect on it, who am I really doing it for?
This is a ritual that isn’t for anyone to see, but it is for us to feel.
When we consciously invite and cultivate loving connection, it doesn’t need to be a visible act or something anyone else knows we have done.
And, the effect can be felt.
When I choose to daily think of and send loving thoughts, not only to my husband but also to myself, it sets a tone, a backdrop, an ambience that is greater, and deeper, and sweeter than an individual word or act.
Cultivating loving connection means investing loving thoughts, loving words, loving deeds into our own being and our own space.
In the ritual I’ve shared here, it is obviously in the context of marriage, but I invite you to consider ways you can cultivate loving connection in whatever context or contexts of relationship is relevant for you.
It may be a sibling, a friend, a parent, a colleague, a neighbour, the man sitting all day in the laneway as you and life pass by. Whoever, and whatever the nature of relationship you choose, remember to include yourself in the loving intention as you send out loving thoughts.
As we consciously choose moments to connect lovingly in our own minds, it helps to be present to the blessings we already enjoy.
It helps us to anticipate with a grateful heart the blessings yet ahead.
It helps us to truly see the beauty in the normal, somewhat mundane moments of daily life. What we could see as a chore, or something to just mindlessly get out of the way becomes a gift of reflection.
What chores are on your plate each day that could be opportunities for cultivating loving connection? Do share your thoughts in the comments below, I would love to hear the way YOU cultivate loving connection each day.
Thank you for you. Thank you for sharing time. Thank you for your loving heart.
Welcome here.
Welcome to living your life.
Consciously.
Lovingly.
Gently.
Be kind to you.
Be kind.
Have a wonderful day.
Lovingly,
Melanie Williams de Amaya
Driftwood and Grace
Driftwood and Grace is my way of sharing brief moments of connection and calm with anyone looking for a sanctuary and more meaning in their days. If that’s you consider becoming a free or paid subscriber or sharing with someone who may enjoy!
The heart
is a thousand stringed
instrument,
that can only be tuned
with love.
Hafiz