Today has been an absolute struggle. I’ve been getting pulled in many different directions all at once lately and I’m starting to lose steam. With my attention to details being sacrificed due to being spread thin, lately my work quality has been not as high as I like, and I can see things getting worse in the near future.

Right about now, I could use a Red Bull for my spirit. I’m not a poet or anything, but while I was feeling sorry for myself, I came up with a phrase that gave me the extra boost I needed to get my spirits up:

Only love can create something from nothing.

I know, it sounds pretty sappy. However, think about it. Think of something you do for yourself, or better yet, for a loved one (a significant other, your child, your mother, or a best friend). What if you found out that that person was in trouble? Serious trouble, and they need your help now? Would you say “No?” I thought so - you’d be there to support them in a heartbeat, filled with the focused determination that is needed to give them the help for whatever that serious trouble is.

Now, extend that love to beyond the immediate. If you’re the breadwinner for your family, think of why you feel compelled to show up to work on days you want to stay in bed. Think of the times you patiently listened to your loved one complain about their day. Also think about when that loved one treats you to dinner or buys you a present.

This “thing” is the also the source of community service projects like Habitat for Humanity and Big Brother. We see love creating something from nothing all the time, and when the soul gets tired, love can be the Red Bull for the soul.

PS: That “something” that love can create isn’t always good, though. When the love is misaligned, that something can be bad. Greed is misplaced love. Hatred, to me, is warped love (a love against the object in question). Love with the wrong ideas lead to misunderstanding.

PPS: I think I’m the original author of this quote !! I checked Google and no one else said it (at least said it the way I did).