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In This Article:

• How does living with love transform relationships and well-being?
• How can adding love improve daily interactions and personal growth?
• Why is love the simple solution to life’s complex problems?

Just Add Love: A Recipe for Life, Love, and Happiness

by Marie T. Russell.

Many years ago, someone I knew had a “mantra” or “catch-phrase” which he repeated to all who were willing (or not) to hear. And it was: “Love Is All There Is”. And while I felt was a lofty statement, part of me bristled every time I heard it. After all, how could he say that love is all there is when there is so much war, hatred, crime, pettiness, jealousy, etc. etc.

Years later, as wisdom set in (an ongoing process) I realized that he was right. But to understand the “rightness” of his comment, one also had to understand that all the “bad situations” in the world were due to the absence of Love. Thus they did not really have any form or essence on their own... they were simply the absence of Love.

So if we look at the things I named… war, hatred, crime, pettiness, jealousy… are they all the absence of Love? Yes, definitely.

As I was reflecting on this, I realized that life (ours and others) is like a personal recipe we are all working on. Just as when you’re cooking, you can either follow the recipe to the letter, or as most good cooks know, you taste and adjust as you go along.

And so it is with life. We are not meant to follow someone else’s recipe as we are our own unique creation and the “ingredients” or talents that are ingrained in us are different for everyone. So everyone has their own unique recipe with their own unique ingredients. And those ingredients are meant to produce a unique result for each and every one.

However, there is one ingredient that needs to be present in each and every “recipe” in order for the recipe to be successful – to taste good, to look good, to feel good. And that ingredient is Love.

Just think about it… If Love is not present in your life, whether internally or externally, your life will not taste quite right. It will “taste” bitter, sour, and unpalatable. So how do you fix any “recipe” that doesn’t taste right? You add the missing ingredient, or add more of one particular ingredient.

In the case of our lives (and the world around us), the missing ingredient is Love in its many forms: patience, compassion, acceptance, generosity, gratitude, etc. etc. If you look at any situation that is “off” in the world, the missing ingredient is Love.

Where to Start

Now, as with anything, we must first start with our own selves. If you’re making soup, you must start with a clean pot. If you’re teaching others to make soup, you also must start with a clean pot. So, in the same way, if you want to spread Love in the world and in the lives of the people around you, you must first have love in your own heart and give it to yourself.

Now, I’m not talking about selfishness or not caring for others. Loving ourselves includes seeing that everyone around us is a reflection of us (a carbon-copy). And thus to love ourselves, we have to be willing to love the “flaws” or absences of Love we see in others… After all, they are simply showing us where we are lacking in Love and acceptance in our own Self.

So What’s the Solution?

When we’re cooking something, most of us will taste it as we go along to see what it tastes like. And then we will add whatever we feel is the missing ingredient… , more spices, more liquid, etc. In the case of Life, there is only one missing ingredient in its many forms. And that missing ingredient is Love in the form of acceptance, generosity, patience, good-will, friendliness, neighborliness, support, etc.

So if your life does not “taste” quite right, see where it is missing Love. Is it for your own self? Is it for your neighbor? Is is for the people on the other side of the political spectrum, or racial, or economic, or educational divide? Wherever your life tastes “off”, add Love.

And whenever the world itself is missing something to attain harmony, balance, equality, happiness, etc. you can be sure the missing ingredient is Love. See how you can add some Love to the situation. Sometimes it is by your words and actions, and sometimes it might be in your thoughts, or even just your facial expression, as in smiling at someone. Rather than send negative, judgmental thoughts towards a person or situation, send thoughts of healing (Love), acceptance (Love), and wisdom (Love).

Love is all there is and what the world needs now is Love. Clichés? Perhaps, but true nevertheless. It’s so simple that it’s almost mind-blowing. And that may be the solution. Our mind, whose purpose is to serve Love or Highest Good, has been diverted to believe that it must serve greed, separation, and only itself. So the more Love we add to our thoughts, to our actions, to our Life, the more we will overrule the petty thoughts of the mind. These unloving thoughts have been planted in our mind by advertising slogans, educational systems that are based on others “having the power” or being “better or more deserving” than us, and people who are afraid to love in case they get hurt.

And yes, we may get hurt. We may get rejected. We may get mocked. But as everyone knows by experience, when you’re learning a new thing (walking, reading, arithmetic, etc.) you get it “wrong” numerous times before you get it “right”. You will fall down many times as you learn to walk, you may get mocked by others as you try to become the best figure-skater there is (if you’re not very good). Yet when the goal is something that is important to us (walking, learning to eat on our own, etc.) we persist. And we reach a point where we have mastered the task.

And so it is with Love. We may falter, we may fail, we may “do it wrong”. Yet persist we must. If we want to end up with an award-winning recipe for Life, we must persist. We must adjust our recipe as we go along. When we see that there is something “off”, something not quite right, something missing, just add Love in one of its multiple aspects.

Love is the healer, the teacher, the happiness-bringer. Love is the solution to all of the world’s problems. Sound simplistic? Yes it is, but that’s the wonderful thing about it. It is simple. It’s a simple solution for complex problems. But it is the solution!

Love is all there is! And if something is not quite right in the world, then it’s simply missing Love. So, see how you can add Love to it, and share your Love in large amounts with the people around you, and watch it spread. Forget if the person loves you back, or seems to be sharing the Love. That is not your business. Your business is YOU! And your business is to keep adding Love whenever and wherever it seems to be missing.

If you enter a dark room, one where Love (light) is absent, then your task is to turn on the light of Love and dissipate the darkness. As Love enters the arena of Life, the light gets turned on. And things will start shifting…

So if something is “wrong” or missing in your Life, the simple fix is: “Add Love”.
   

Related Book: Common Wisdom

Common Wisdom: 8 Scientific Elements of a Meaningful Life
by Dr. Laura Gabayan.

About The Author

Marie T. Russell is the founder of InnerSelf Magazine (founded 1985). She also produced and hosted a weekly South Florida radio broadcast, Inner Power, from 1992-1995 which focused on themes such as self-esteem, personal growth, and well-being. Her articles focus on transformation and reconnecting with our own inner source of joy and creativity.

Creative Commons 3.0: This article is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 4.0 License. Attribute the author: Marie T. Russell, InnerSelf.com. Link back to the article: This article originally appeared on InnerSelf.com

🔹 Article Recap:

Love is the ultimate key to happiness, healing, and fulfillment. When something in life feels "off," the missing ingredient is often love—whether in relationships, self-care, or interactions with others. Living with love means embracing patience, compassion, and kindness, creating a ripple effect of positivity. By choosing love daily, we illuminate the darkness, heal emotional wounds, and cultivate a world where joy and connection thrive.

#PowerOfLove #LivingWithLove #ChooseLove #HealingThroughLove #LoveInDailyLife #SpreadingKindness #LoveMindset #TransformWithLove #CompassionateLiving