“Unconditional love is when you love with an open heart no matter the condition of other people’s hearts. It’s putting aside your own wants and needs and loving for the simple sake of loving – expecting nothing in return, and not being disappointed if it goes ignored.”

I think a lot of people forget to love without expectations. Everything we do in life is an expression of love when it comes from the heart. Even something small that seems like it’s devoid of all meaning. Doing favors for people, helping them out with their daily tasks, taking the time out to talk to them, or give something to them even if it’s just a smile – and too many people are so willing to quickly pull that love back when they don’t find immediate gratification returned to them and they don’t get what they want.

We all face that same challenge at different times in our lives — feeling that our efforts are unappreciated and we have wasted our time… and perhaps we have failed, maybe we think our love wasn’t good enough because people don’t seem to care – but when we love with an open and honest heart, we can never fail.

Love in all forms in the moment is always sweet. It’s only when we start to move out of the present moment that it turns bittersweet — when we think of the past or worry about the future or drag our thoughts somewhere beyond the here and now.

When people ask me how to be a better person, I tell them to be more like a tree. Trees don’t withhold their shade from anything or anyone – not even the bugs who eat their bark nor the humans who chop them down.