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Personal reflection questions - Love and Family
The goal of The Mystery of Love is to broaden the definition of love, as well as expand the awareness of love in all aspects of life. To further this goal and inspire discussion, we've developed a set of questions to help our viewers reflect on their personal experience of love and its many dimensions. We encourage you to share your thoughts with us by submitting your comments and stories to this site.
bullet What is the impact of physical separation on family ties?
bullet What are the results of living in a society where people often move away from family?
bullet How does a parent disapprove of a child’s choice and still continue to love that child unconditionally?
bullet Growing up, how did people in your family show love?
bullet Is it easier to love certain family members, but not others?
bullet What enables you to cope when faced with the loss of love?
Suggestions for putting love into action in your life and community
bullet Have a love talk - Pick one person with whom you might not otherwise talk about love and arrange to have a conversation with them.
bullet Evaluate love in your daily life - Assess the following areas of your life and think of at least one specific thing you could do in each area that would allow you to act in a loving way. 
   - Work or school
   - Immediate family
   - Extended family
   - Neighborhood (including people with whom you engage at places like the grocery store, gas station, etc.)
   - Team, civic organization, religious congregation, or volunteer group
Commit to taking at least one of the actions on your list.
bullet Investigate what your faith says about love - Research your religion’s teachings about love or acts of loving kindness.  Share your findings with your congregation, family or study group. 
bullet Express love through creativity - Host Anna Deavere Smith challenges viewers saying, “Most of us cannot survive, and do not want to live a single day, without love.  We can make a choice to live life through the lens of fear, of separation, competition, and loss.  Or we can see the same world differently, through the lens of love and connection.” Pick an area of your life or community to approach with a new vision.  See if you can begin to make that vision concrete by creating it through a form of artisitc expression (painting, collage, sculpture, dance, writing, drama, etc).  Share your creation with family, friends, or a group. 
bullet See how love spreads - Here's an activity you can do with a group: Host Anna Deavere Smith says, “We need to recognize and honor equally the many loves that help create a healthy life…”  Make a list of all the different kinds of love that you think are needed to create and sustain a healthy life.   Make a ripple chart for one or more of the items on your list. On each ripple emanating from your source, indicate who would or could be touched.  As each person in the group shares their chart, make special note of how many people can be affected by a single source or act.
bullet Manifest love in your community - Determine which volunteer or non-profit organizations in your community perform acts of loving kindness or increase people’s capacity to act in loving ways.  Find out how you can get involved and/or support their work.

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