Words by Christina Huntington // Photography by Sarah Prikryl // Video by  Sarah Prikryl & Christina Huntington

Happy Valentine’s Day!! Sure, it may be a holiday that was made up to sell greeting cards, chocolate hearts and long stemmed roses…but we are always huge fans of any excuse to celebrate and spread more love in the world! But if we’re being totally honest, even just the word “love” can be challenging for a lot of people. We all have different interpretations of what love is from our own history and experience—how we’ve “gotten” it, how we’ve “lost” it and how well we have or have not managed to give it to others and ourselves. Love can also feel like a lot of pressure, inundated since birth with so many versions of what love “should” look like from, let’s face it, not necessarily the best sources. It’s left many people feeling confused about how to love and be loved in a healthy way that leaves us feeling joyful, secure, fulfilled and freely self-expressed. While, oh yeah…also having some fun.

This is the simplest guide to love that I have been able to distill from years of spiritually counseling people: get present. Forget about trying to figure out how to generate love and what it all means and where it’s all going. Just get present. This is how you make your ENTIRE LIFE romantic. Your life itself becomes a great love story when you drop away thinking about your life and simply be in it instead. If that sounds fantastical, it is. Life experienced this way becomes wonder-filled, awe-some, magic-al—all those words from childhood when the world was still brand new and full of hope and possibility. Becoming present requires a willingness for a return to innocence. Allowing yourself to be a beginner again, giving up what you “know”, being willing to see things differently and allowing life to be a constant state of curiosity and discovery.

So how do you just “get present” in our over-stimulated, over-extended, over-whelming modern world? Literally just start by opening your eyes and opening your heart to the beauty all around you. That means put your phone down, step away from the computer, put the video games away, turn the TV off. Step outside and watch the sunset in your front yard for ten minutes at the end of your day. Watch the pink clouds swell and fade as the stars twinkle to life and the moon begins to rise in the night sky. Feel the breeze on your face, the fresh air rushing into your lungs. Feel the ground beneath your feet. Pet your dog or cat. Feel your own heart beating. Allow yourself to just BE. The big secret of life is that all of its sweetness is hidden in the silence. When you allow yourself to get still with life, you are inviting intimacy.

It’s the same exact thing with people. When you invite stillness and a space for quiet listening, intimacy blooms. If you want to create real intimacy with the people in your life, you need to learn how to bring stillness into your relationships. When was the last time you really took in your partner, just looked into their eyes? Or the last time you shared secrets and dreams under a makeshift blanket fort? Vulnerability and a deep sense of connection blossom whenever we feel: seen, heard, valued and cared for (the four things all human beings crave most). So take a moment to just look into your partner’s eyes without having to do anything. Allow yourself to just enjoy the feeling of their touch, like the first time you ever held hands. Just breathe and be still together. Watch the sunset outside. Build that blanket fort and giggle. Just remember that life is meant to be lived in the here and now—which means collecting ALL of your five senses and bringing them into each and every moment.

So if you want to create more love in your life, this is your assignment: for this entire week, practice bringing your sense of sight, sound, smell, taste and touch to as many moments as you possibly can. Feel what happens when you slow down, stop thinking about your life and allow yourself to fully experience it with every part of you instead. We promise—your whole life will become a beautiful love story!!

Wanna see what happens when you get present & gaze into your partner’s eyes? Watch our celestial stop motion fantasy below! Click arrow in center of screen for your Valentine’s Day Love Story! 

HAPPY LOVING!! xoxo, Sirens & Scoundrels

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