And All He Asks Of Us, Is We Give Each Other Love
February 14 …6:54am … Downtown … Atlanta GA.
As usual, I’m up early, not because it’s Valentine’s Day, moreso because Arsenal are playing Leicester in a top of the table clash in the EPL (I know, that sounds surreal in itself). Last night I attended my friends surprise 40th Birthday party which had been organized by his better half. It was a great night and it was good to see so many familiar faces. I maintain, the best people are born in February, though I might be biased.
So it’s Valentine’s Day and as a sense of normality slowly begins to return to my life, there is this song that is on repeat in my head.
I work in music, I am surrounded by it daily, and as I always say, if I had paid attention to education as much as I have music, I’d have finished 16 PhD’s.
This song is specially poignant because I’ve seen the power of it’s lyrics over the last 72 hours. I’ve lost a brother in the shape of Richard Antwi who passed away 3 nights ago in London. I’ve also seen what love can do, it can make someone fly 24 hours to attend a 4 hour function, just because two people love each other. Today, all over my time line it’s heart and roses and chocolate. A lot of chocolate.
Still, the song is on repeat in my head because to me it explains life, love and spirituality in such a simple way. Marvin Gaye crafted a masterpiece album in 1971 called “What’s Going On?” It was militant, it was personal, it was magnificent.
Tucked neatly on this album is a gem called “God Is Love”, I’ll share some lyrics here.
Oh don’t go and talk about my Father
God is my friend
Jesus is my friend
He made this world for us to live in, and gave us everything
And all he asks of us is we give each other love.
Oh ya
Don’t go and talk about my father
Cause God is my friend
Jesus is my friend
He loves us whether or not we know it
Just loves us, oh ya
And He’ll forgive all our sins
Forgive all our sins
And all He asks of us, is we give each other love.
Every issue we go through in life could be resolved if we paused and thought about those lines. The MOST HIGH, whether you are Muslim, Christian, Buddhist. Jewish, Hindi, whatever. All He/She asks of us, is that we give each other love.
This Valentine’s I wish you love.
If you’re black. I wish you love.
If you’re white, I wish you love.
If you’re rich, I wish you love.
If you’re poor, I wish you love.
If you’re gay, I wish you love.
If you’re straight, I wish you love.
After all, “all he asks of us, is we give each other love” …
Happy Valentine’s Day if you celebrate it. Wherever you are.
I wish you love.