Time Enough for Love?
“What the world needs now is love, sweet love…”
—Lyrics by Burt Bacharach and Hal David
February is often called the “month of love, self-love” thanks to Valentine’s Day. While this holiday spotlights romantic love—quite commercially, in many cases—love itself transcends mere romance. As philosopher-poet Khalil Gibran famously taught, love is a universal force that needs consistent nurturing, much like a garden needs water and sunlight. Saint Valentine, for whom the holiday is named, would perhaps be more honored by a lasting tradition of universal, all-encompassing love than a single day of heart-shaped chocolates and fleeting gestures.
Whether or not we experienced deep, nurturing love as children, we can dedicate ourselves to learning to love—ourselves and others—at any point in life. Love is an art, a skill, and an ongoing process that requires time, courage, and commitment. If we are willing to make “Time Enough for Love,” the potential for personal growth and planetary healing is immense.
Reimagining the “Month of Love”
February’s “month of love” can be a gentle reminder to pause and ask ourselves: How do I give and receive love every day? While it’s easy to send Valentine’s Day cards, buy flowers, or share a social media post about romance, it’s more challenging—and more rewarding—to consistently cultivate love as an ongoing practice.
In a world fraught with violence and division, we can become overwhelmed by the sheer amount of suffering. Yet love remains a potent force for transformation. As the late singer and activist John Lennon once said, “Love is the flower you’ve got to let grow.” So, what if we took Lennon’s advice (and the spirit of Valentine’s Day) to heart, weaving love into our daily habits, values, and relationships rather than confining it to one date on the calendar?
The Honeybee Analogy: A Life’s Work in Love
A powerful metaphor for this journey of cultivating and sharing love is the humble honeybee. Bees spend their entire lives gathering nectar from flowers, returning to their hives, and transforming this nectar into honey. It can take up to eight bees their entire lifetimes to create a single teaspoon of honey. This staggering fact underscores the dedication, cooperation, and vision it takes to produce something sweet and nourishing.
When we “make honey” in our relationships—whether romantic, familial, friendly, or professional—we commit to a similar process:
- Gathering nectar from our daily interactions and experiences.
- Transforming these raw emotional materials into understanding, kindness, and deeper connection.
- Sharing our “honey” with those around us, including strangers who may need it most.
The bee’s tireless work serves as a potent analogy for love: It might appear small in each individual act, but collectively, it creates a sweetness that enriches life for everyone.
Cultivating Self-Love First
Before sharing love widely, we must nurture it within ourselves. Self-love is the soil from which all other forms of genuine love can grow. Without it, we risk offering love from a place of emptiness or neediness rather than wholeness.
Why Self-Love Matters
- Emotional Resilience: When you truly value yourself, external difficulties become more manageable.
- Healthy Boundaries: Self-respect fosters the ability to say “no” to what harms you and “yes” to what nurtures you.
- Better Relationships: Self-love often eliminates toxic patterns like codependency or constant external validation.
Expanding Love Beyond the Self
Once you establish a healthy foundation of self-love, you can more effectively extend genuine compassion to others. Rather than feeling drained or resentful, your acts of kindness flow from a sense of abundance. This shift helps you become an agent of positive change within your community, workplace, and family.
Sharing the Wealth of Love
- Family and Close Friends: Offer an open ear, a safe space to vent emotions, or a thoughtful gesture.
- Workplace: Spread positivity by acknowledging colleagues’ contributions and showing gratitude.
- Community: Volunteer at local organizations or participate in community-building events.
Above all, remember that it takes consistent, small acts to create a ripple effect. Like bees working collectively, each of us can add to the communal “hive” of love that benefits society at large.
Practical Ways to “Make Honey” Year-Round
Embracing love as a lifelong habit means committing to daily practices that foster connection. Here are a few suggestions:
- Set a Love Intention: Begin each week by writing down one specific intention—like performing a random act of kindness or repairing a strained relationship.
- Build Compassionate Communication Skills: Practice active listening and honest expression of needs.
- Honor Diversity: Actively seek out experiences or gatherings where you can learn from people of different cultures, faiths, or viewpoints.
External Link: World Economic Forum on the Power of Diversity
- Celebrate Small Victories: Just as bees celebrate every successful foraging trip, acknowledge your small steps toward deeper love.
- Reflect & Recharge: Each month, pause to assess what worked, what didn’t, and how you can refine your “love-making” in the coming month.
Seeking Help and Community Support
Love is often tested by personal challenges, past traumas, and unresolved emotional wounds. If old patterns keep resurfacing, seeking professional guidance—such as a counselor or a spiritual therapist—can be transformative. There’s no shame in needing help; we’re social beings built to grow through connection.
Final Thoughts & Invitation
Have you got time enough for love?” asks the question that started it all. The answer lies in your everyday choices—how you speak to yourself, how you relate to others, and how you contribute to the world. Like honeybees, we can commit our lives to generating and distributing the sweetness of compassion, empathy, and genuine understanding. It might seem like a small effort day by day, but over time, the yield can be immeasurable.
If you’d like personalized guidance on cultivating self-love, improving relationships, or discovering the deeper dimensions of love in your life, we invite you to connect with us.
Soul to Soul Counselling
Nur Ambreen Ihsanullah
Today and tomorrow through my work with men to guide and facilitate the inner work necessary for them to release invisible wounds.
