We make thousands of choices every single day.

Some are small—what to eat for breakfast, whether to open our news app or doom-scroll before bed, whether to call a friend back. Other choices feel enormous—should I stay in this job, this relationship, this city?

We weigh pros and cons, talk it through with people we trust, and still, we grapple with the decision.

But beneath all of it, I’ve come to see there are really only two options: choices rooted in love or choices rooted in fear. It sounds simple, but when you become more aware of this nuance, everything changes.

Every uplifting emotion—joy, gratitude, compassion, pride—springs from love. Every heavy emotion—anger, jealousy, shame, loneliness—traces back to fear. Love is steady, clear, and whole. Fear, on the other hand, wears endless disguises.

Fear whispers: you’re not ready, you’re not enough, you might fail. It convinces us to shrink when life is asking us to expand. And when fear becomes the lens we look through, we step away from the very path that would bring us joy, peace, and fulfillment.

Love feels different. Think of a time you noticed the morning sun breaking through the trees, a stunning pink and purple sunset, or when someone surprised you with kindness. That feeling of softness in your chest? That’s love.

Now remember a time you couldn’t stop replaying a conversation in your head, worrying what someone thought of you or if you said the wrong thing or wondering why the other person said what they did. That heaviness in your stomach? That’s fear.

Noticing how it feels in your body is a good guide in knowing which one we’re choosing.

Love feels light, open, peaceful—even if it’s tender or vulnerable. Fear feels tight, heavy, urgent. Your body knows the difference if you take a moment to listen.

When we choose from fear, we separate ourselves.

When we choose from love, we return to who we really are.

We open ourselves up to more love and the universe rushes in to meet us there—silently whispering, “I’ve been waiting for you.”

And here’s the beautiful part: we always get to choose again. In moments of tightness or fear, you can pause, breathe, and ask yourself, Am I willing to see this differently?

That one question can change the course of a moment, a day, even a lifetime. It doesn’t mean the circumstances change on the spot, but it changes the way you show up in those circumstances. Fear feels tight. Love feels soft.

I’ve noticed, time and again, when I choose love, I soften in all areas of my life. My inner critic gets quiet, I stop rehashing old stories and ruminating on things I cannot change. I give myself grace and make space for gratitude, patience, and trust. When I soften toward myself, that softness flows toward others. And everything shifts.

The ripple effect is undeniable.

The more we practice this shift in the little moments, the more we see the shift in the big ones. It’s easy to think that our big choices—like where to live, whether to stay of go, what’s the next career move—are the ones that matter the most. But it’s those small choices between love and fear that quietly shape our lives. These times help prime us so that choosing love in the bigger moments is like breathing—easy, natural, beautiful.

That’s where the real change happens. Every time we choose love, even in the smallest ways, it seeps out and touches our families, our friends, our community, and our world.

This is your invitation to notice today where your thoughts and actions are rooted in fear—where they feel heavy, urgent, or unsettling. And notice when your thoughts and actions are rooted in love—where they feel light, peaceful, or kind.

And when you notice fear, be gentle with yourself. Pause, breathe, and ask yourself: Am I willing to see this differently?

Life will keep offering us this same choice, over and over: love or fear.

Every time we choose love, we align more deeply with ourselves. Every time we choose love, the world around us softens.

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