I was lucky enough to be invited to be the celebrant at a blessing last weekend, held to celebrate the marriage of friends, with their family and friends, who weren’t able to be at the actual wedding.

I took as the theme, for my brief part in it, love, and it turned out to be even more appropriate than I thought it was.

I didn’t know many of the people there, but was welcomed in like an old friend. And I heard and witnessed so many examples of love in action, a microcosm of how our world could be if we all came from a place of love rather than fear.

It wasn’t about big declarations of love; it was about simple actions and reactions: laughing together, holding hands, stopping conversation for a moment to welcome someone new to the table, keeping an eye on each other’s children, talking with affection about each other.

It all created an atmosphere of joy and positivity, and I felt privileged to be included in it – I really got that old saying: ‘being taken into the bosom of the family.’

And it was still there in the morning, even with the requisite hangovers and tiredness.!

What a great reminder of how we can be, and, I believe, how we inherently are as human beings.

Let’s just do more of those simple acts of love, and spread it around, especially to those who rarely feel it. It changes the world.

And thank you, Marie and Merch, for inviting me to be a part of such a special experience.