That Satisfied Feeling . . .

What comes to mind when you hear the word “satisfied”? Take a moment to think … When was the last time you felt really satisfied and what made you feel that way? Some people relate it to how they feel after they have eaten a great meal, others will recall how they felt when they finished a big project, still others for reaching a goal … those are all great, but what I want to discuss is the satisfaction we get when we let out our true feelings instead of holding them in and keeping them to ourself.

Caring for others is automatically built into our souls. Life experience can mess with it and teach us bottle it all up inside however, that is not natural. Inside we all feel, we care, we love … expressing our feelings, especially love, is what we are made for. Being satisfied with how we relate our feelings is not about what happens to someone else after we express it, it is not about “what is in it for me?” … it is that inner fulfillment that is hard to explain for doing simply what comes naturally … sharing all those loving thoughts that we feel inside … Satisfied, that we lived and fulfilled our purpose in life … to love.

Great thoughts, huh? I wish they were all mine, but I was inspired to think about this by a new song of Jewel’s I heard on the radio today called “Satisfied” … it made me cry, I bought it on iTunes (the acoustic version) and have played it many times today (and cried some more). It is not that it is a sad song, actually it inspires. The reason for my tears is because it expresses thoughts and feelings I have had in the past, in a clear loving way … I never really had the words to explain before.

You see, I am one of those people that have a problem expressing love in verbal way. I always break down and cry .. sad or happy, it does not matter there are tears when I express my deep feelings. I don’t usually hold my feelings in, I find other ways to show my love. The written word is 100% easier for me, so I opt for that method of expression quite often. After reading Gary Chapman’s book “The Five Love Languages”, it was clear to me that neither saying or writing the words were my main love language … Doing things for others to show my love, that is me – that is my main love language. Is this bad? No … any expression of love is great but, my difficulty with expressing it verbally is something I beat myself up over .. it is so frustrating. There are so many times I have walk out of my parent’s house wondering why I did not tell them that I loved them. It should not be a hard thing to do … but, it is for me … it is not natural for me, not comfortable (bringing them homemade jam, helping with a chore they can no longer do … that is my way). I suppose that this is why the song touched me … saying it verbally is something I would like to be able to do with grace (not tears).

This song took me to several places in my life … my last goodbye to a very close friend, a midnight conversation with my cousin about love languages, and my last visit with my grandmother. I had to ask myself why these situations came immediately to mind .. why not a million of others? And, I believe it was because these conversations were from deep in my heart … I let out those feelings verbally for a change and I had that special feeling inside afterwards … I was satisfied (and a little wet from tears).

Time with the people we love is precious .. we have no idea when we will see them again … or even if we will see them again .. we forget that. This song stresses that we can all feel emotionally satisfied if we are honest and open with those people we love … all we have to do is say it and mean it. And, if you are like me and have a problem saying it … find your love language and express in a way that is comfortable to you … don’t miss the opportunity … don’t live with that painful regret.

Here are the lyric’s to “Satisfied” by Jewel …. I think you will see what I mean. You can hear two versions of the song for free (acoustic and not) as well as an interview with Jewel here: Listen to Jewel’s song Satisfied.

Satisfied If you love somebody You better let it out Don’t hold it back While you’re trying to figure it out Don’t be timid Don’t be afraid to hurt Run toward the flame Run toward the fire Hold on for all your worth Cause the only real pain a heart can ever know Is the sorrow of regret When you don’t let your feelings show [Chorus] So did you say it Did you mean it Did you lay it on the line Did you make it count Did you look ’em in the eye Did they feel it Did you say it in time Did you say it out loud ’cause if you did hun Then you lived some That feeling inside That’s called satisfied Busy people walking by Can’t help but worry some With so many things to do So little love gets done Empty hearts everywhere Drowning but dying of thirst If we want love

It’s not that tough Start by giving it first It’s easy to give Baby can’t you see Just close your eyes open your heart And do what comes naturally [Chorus] Well did you say it Did you mean it Did you lay it on the line Did you make it count Did you look ’em in the eye and Did they feel it Did you say it in time Did you say it out loud ’cause if you did hun Then you lived some That feeling inside That’s called satisfied [Bridge] Horses are built to run The sun is meant to shine above Flowers are made to bloom And then there’s us We were born to love We were born to love So did you say it Did you mean it Did you lay it all on the line [chorus] [Repeat Chorus]

~ by bearyweather on July 7, 2010.