Life is a sensuous experience.

We could fall in love all day long for the rest of our lives—and not need a partner to feel that warm, fuzzy beauty moving through our veins like thick caramel syrup.

That’s right.

We can be seduced by the cerulean blue sky and kissed passionately by the way the clouds hang low, plump, pink and purple streaked with tangerine, at sunrise.

We can be f*cked by how good it feels to dance until midnight, letting our hair get sweaty as freedom fills the spaces in our hearts that were achy or tight.

We can get hot and bothered by digging knee-deep into a painting, totally covered in neon green, bright blue, and the howling wildness of passion itself.

We can be in awe of misty mountains and utterly undone by the smell of the forest after it rains.

We can feel pleasure from our own fingertips grazing gently over our lips and jaw, down to our collarbone.

We don’t need a partner to experience love. That’s just the cherry on top.

But the sundae—is life.

And it’s a damn delicious, multi-flavored sundae with sprinkles on top.

Why not dig in? Why not engage all of our senses? Why wait for a lover to feast on the deliciousness of everything? 

Because love—love is everywhere. There is no scarcity of it. It’s threaded in the gold of every sunrise. It’s woven into every breath, every poem, every wildflower, every drop of water, every stranger’s smile, every tear, every juicy heart of our friends, every dream we’ve dared not to give up on.

It doesn’t only exist in a person who could potentially make us happy.

Love is everywhere.

It vibrates in you, in me, in all of us—it belongs, it lives within every cell.

We live not in scarcity—but in abundance. What would it take to remember the juiciness of that—the joy of that?

Life itself is a sensuous experience. Being in our bodies is not a heavy burden, but a wild exploration of the flesh. Pleasure is a daily journey, to be tasted in the most mundane and unexpected places. 

We can fall in love all the time…

With ideas, dreams, the sunflowers on our windowsill. We can fall in love with the stories that sing truth, stir fire and set our hearts free. We can fall in love with with dancing, with being alone, with the soaring calls of our soul, with feeling the softness of our blankets on our cheek before we go to sleep at night.

We don’t need to reach outward for love. We don’t need to reach at all.

It is about not reaching.

We don’t have to do a damn thing. We are invited to simply open, feel, and allow.

Perhaps love is a way of looking with our hearts—letting them have eyes. Perhaps it’s not always about being mindful, but being heartful. 

When we perceive directly with our hearts, everything looks different. The simplest things become enough. They become shockingly beautiful. They become play. They become bliss. We tune into the joy that is so innate to us…

It is enough to sit in bed, lingering for a few extra moments and utterly savoring the pitter-pattering of the rain dripping from the heavens onto our rooftops.

It is enough to sit alone in complete silence and tune into the soaring whispers of our souls.

It is enough to feel the heart connection between us and a dear friend.

It is enough to feel everything—the truth of our emotions swishing inside us like waves.

It is enough to howl in exquisite laughter with another.

It is enough to stretch our body in slow, succulent yoga poses, as we melt into the mat—as we melt into the matrix of life itself.

There is no forcing. There is no trying. There is no failing.

This falling in love—is effortless. It’s totally natural. It’s what happens when we are connected to our Selves, to the divine, to the pulse of life itself.

It gives us wings. And roots us, at the same time.

It’s harmonious in every way.

It simply flows.

It flowers, always.

We can fall in love with every moment, the way we would excitedly get to know a new lover. Always adventuring further,  always discovering more with the breaking of each new day.

There need not be anyone to bring us roses, for the juicy nectar of existence itself could be what keeps us up at night. Our purpose can make us howl wildly with pleasure. The beauty of the universe itself can put a starry twinkle in our eyes.

Love surrounds us like a net.

We are that fortunate; that held.

Lie back and taste your blessings.

Even the smallest ones, like this breath, like the subtle connection between us from reading these words.

Be this blessing.

Be this prayer.

Be the incredible magic you are. 

Let all boom within you, beside you, all around you—until you’re covered in flowers and buds—sunflowers, buttercups, tiger lilies and bright pink petunias.

There is that much love.

There is no limit.

You are that much love. And yes, you are that beautiful, dear soul.

Make love to this life, every day.

Drink it up.

Soak it in.

Fall in the love with life.

Fall head over heels for the way the sun hits the forest and illuminates every tree in a symphony of emerald neon. Fall in love with words. With your own heart. With your loved ones. With your pets. With the tenderness of the morning itself. The subtle glow of the afternoon. The darkened cloak of the evening.

Fall in love with your sadness. Your tears. Your fears. The wounds and ripped places in your heart.

Fall in love with what’s possible—with all your heart longs to create.

There is no limit.

Don’t miss any opportunity to fall in love.

With beauty. With pain. With truth. With struggle and hardship. With dreams. With your awesome, badass, brilliant self.

Slow down, open up—and feel. Cherish everything.

Don’t miss an opportunity to fall in love.

Let the seconds themselves romance you.

Feel thunder seduce you into bliss that makes you exhale in a way you never have.

Feel the dirt crawl under your fingernails as you garden.

Savor everything.

In those quiet moments where we’re really in our bodies—aware, feeling, sensing everything—and it seems like nothing is happening—I swear, that’s when everything happens. Those subtlest shifts are sometimes the most life-changing ones.

We don’t need a lover to make life ripe—it already is.

Bite into it every day, like you would a plump strawberry.

Feel the juice drip down your chin.

And celebrate how delicious that is.

You don’t need a lover to fall in love.

All you need is your curiosity.

And

A willing heart

Synced to the sweet tune of

This breath.

~

Here are some of my favorite ways to make love to life. Enjoy!

Wash the dishes. Feel everything. The hot water on your hands, the scent of the soap, and what it feels like when the dish is clean. 

Hold pigeon pose for five minutes, sinking slightly deeper with every exhale. Repeat on the other side. 

Drink a cup of tea. Do nothing else. Feel the steam rising to your face, the heat in your hands. Experience the mug, the flavor, how you feel. 

Sit in stillness and listen to the rain falling, for ten minutes…no texting. No checking email. Just listening. Breathing. And feeling. 

Eat a piece of dark chocolate slowly. Experience it melt on your tongue. 

Linger in bed for five minutes in the morning. 

Take a bath. Let the running faucet be like a waterfall and guide you on a meditation as the tub fills up. 

Give yourself a foot rub. Do one foot, then feel the difference. What tension melts away? What sensations crest? What feels really good? Do more of that! For a simple how-to, this video is awesome. 

Set your alarm for three times a day. When it goes off, stop what you’re doing. Put your hand over your heart—and take slow, deep ten breaths. Notice how you feel afterward. Notice how this affects the rest of your day. 

Journal first thing in the morning—before doing anything else. 

Set a timer for seven minutes and without stopping—or thinking—write a poem. Don’t let your pen leave the paper. Anything goes. Write whatever comes to your heart, whatever scampers into our soul. No judgements. Just play here. Be with the process itself. 

Cook yourself a nourishing, yummy meal. Be with every part of the process. Getting in the car to buy the groceries. Selecting what you want to eat. Chopping the vegetables. Hearing the pan sizzle. Smelling the food cook in the oven. And finally, savoring, with your entire body the first bite. 

Folding laundry! Feel the fabric of each piece of clothing. Take your time. See how you hands work to fold, and be with the in and out waves of your breath. 

Take a break from whatever project you’re working on and stick out your tongue. Do lion’s breath. Make silly faces. Be ridiculous. Dance around. Shake it out. What shifts? What becomes lighter? 

Above all, be creative!  

Heartful, sensuous practices can be woven into anything.  Slow down—open up—and feel. In this gentle spaciousness, do what you thought you couldn’t—fall madly in love with life.

~

Author: Sarah Harvey
Image: Flickr
Editor: Lieselle Davidson