It is the twentieth anniversary of the Christmas movie Love Actually. It is much more a movie about love, so perhaps it is better suited as a Valentine’s Day movie. It begins with a monologue by Hugh Grant, which is all about love.

“Whenever I get gloomy with the state of the world, I think about the arrivals gate at Heathrow Airport. General opinion's starting to make out that we live in a world of hatred and greed, but I don't see that. It seems to me that love is everywhere. Often, it's not particularly dignified or newsworthy, but it's always there - fathers and sons, mothers and daughters, husbands and wives, boyfriends, girlfriends, old friends. When the planes hit the Twin Towers, as far as I know, none of the phone calls from the people on board were messages of hate or revenge - they were all messages of love. If you look for it, I've got a sneaky feeling you'll find that love actually is all around.”

Opening Monologue from the movie Love Actually (2003)

I have always found this very moving. It is an acknowledgment of the deep connections we share. It is not so much a matter of going out and creating connections but instead realizing all the ones that already exist in our lives. This is where gratitude begins, and compassion grows. 

We can have this here and now. We do not have to wait for a monumental event in our lives. We just have to open our hearts and be aware of all we receive from those around us. Love really is everywhere, all around us. 

Later in the film, there is a wedding. After the vows are exchanged, the couple begins to exit the church, and abruptly, a flash mob breaks out. Not dancing but singing and playing various musical instruments. Suddenly, you realize that you are in the middle of a performance of All You Need Is Love. As John Lennon wrote, everything we do has already been done before.

There's nothing you can know that isn't known

Nothing you can see that isn't shown

But love is different—it is something natural. It arises within us, and our life becomes easy when it does.

There's nowhere you can be that isn't where you're meant to be - It's easy

Eastern thought influenced many of John Lennon’s lyrics. He came in contact with Hinduism from George Harrison and Zen Buddhism from Yoko Ono. In turn, the Beatles is how I first came in contact with these spiritual traditions.

“Love” is a term that is not often used in Buddhism. Instead, we use the word “Compassion.” They are related, but compassion emphasizes the deep connection between people. Compassion is a compound of the Latin “com” + “passion.” “Com” means “with,” and “passion” refers to feelings. When we have compassion for others, we feel their feelings as if they were our own. We can identify with them. Our hearts become one.

“Compassion” is usually thought of as being nice to another person. But in Buddhism, it means being of one heart. To be compassionate, we often have to say or do things at the moment that are not necessarily “nice.” In this sense, as Buddhists, Compassion Is All We Need.

In gassho,
Rev Jon Turner