1) The first condition for love is forgiveness. I can't love if I am incapable of forgiving.

2. The second condition for love is trust. I have to earn trust. It's not a given.

3. Love is not a need or a demand that has to be met or filled. It's something that comes but rarely like unexpected rain on a burning summer day.

4. I will never fear the loss of love for love is what the soul is made of and I will have my soul as long as I am alive and even after.

5. I will to love others unconditionally first. Only then will I receive love unconditionally for the greater the conditions that have to be met, the harder is to go to a loving state. Love doesn't like fences.

6. I will never be shy or afraid of expressing my love. I will say, "I Love You" often and joyously.

7. Love and control are opposites. Love is expansion and control is something that stops this expansion. I will not mix up these two.

8. As much as love enables us to see the world in with a startling clarity I will try to look at love as clearly for a lot of other emotions that usually masquerade as love fool us.

9. There can't be total love unless there is love in all aspects of the living, in what I do, in what I think, I what I write, in what I say and in what I express. If there is a lack of love even in a single aspect of life, that will drain away love for the other aspects. A boat with a hole can't stay afloat for long.

10. I will show love concisously towards each and every person I meet, no matter who that person is.

11. I will not judge as I don't want to be judged. The instant I judge I know that I am setting into motion a process in which I shall be judged likewise eventually. What goes around comes around is true.

12. I have realised that I will even get those things that I don't want. Such is the power of thought.

13. Love is a monotonically increasing function of time. Lasting love becomes lasting only becasue it has lasted in time. Love is not instant chicken soup for the soul.

14. I will be deeply emotional towards everything and everyone I love and strongly analytical about the actions I perfrom to manifest this love. This will prevent mistakes and bludners that happen when the emotions are on lukewarm and the action sloppy.

15. Love is a gas, even a little love occupies all available space. So I will be greatful for all the love I already have in my life, for no love is little.

16. Love that comes from an angle of lack is not durable for I can't give what I lack. But love that comes from an abundance is something that will never go away. So I will love with an attitude of abundance rather than one of lack.

17. I will take frequent stock of my love garden. I will check if there are parts of it that are not getting enough nutrients: communication, laughter, spirit or if parts of it are being attacked by pests: fear, anger, jealously. I will take action without delay for love is highly sensitive.

18. Love is like clay. To shape into a beautiful form takes malleable hands. I will strive to be flexible and skillful.

19. I will never criticize or doubt love for it goes away the moment doubt or criticisim come in.

20. I hold this to be a self evident truth: Love is the greatest thing.

2002:08:09 23:30 Atlanta

I wrote this last night after I sat down and analyzed what I have learned from all my experiences in receiving or giving love. The above statements may not be wholly true forever but I belive that they are totally true at this point of time.

I end this with something I read in the New Testament that pharaprases the manifesto the best:

1 Corinthians 13:1-13

If I speak in the tongues of men and angels, but have not love, I have become sounding brass or a tinkling symbol.

And if I have prophecy and know all mysteries and all knowledge, and if I have all faith so as to remove mountains, but have not love, I am nothing. And if I dole out all my goods, and if I deliver my body that I may boast but have not love, nothing I am profited.

Love is long suffering, love is kind, it is not jealous, love does not boast, it is not inflated. It is not discourteous, it is not selfish, it is not irritable, it does not enumerate the evil.It does not rejoice over the wrong, but rejoices in the truth. It covers all things, it has faith for all things, it hopes in all things, it endures in all things.

Love never falls in ruins; but whether prophecies, they will be abolished; or tongues, they will cease; or knowledge, it will be superseded. For we know in part and we prophecy in part. But when the perfect comes, the imperfect will be superseded.

When I was an infant, I spoke as an infant, I reckoned as an infant; when I became [an adult], I abolished the things of the infant. For now we see through a mirror in an enigma, but then face to face. Now I know in part, but then I shall know as also I was fully known.

But now remains faith, hope, love, these three;but the greatest of these is love.

A quater past midnight, my lips are parched but I am not thristy for water. After drowing in sound for more than four hours now I am trying to breate in this antiseptic silence. Music has blurred the boundaries between the sadness which had solidified into a hard tumor and the rest of me. Now like drops of red ink diffusing in a glass water, I feel the sad sensations move through me. But this is a good kind of sadness, this is a sadness that strengthens my soul and takes me to parts of me that are authentic.

There were songs played on the stage and there were songs that the inner and the hidden parts of me played. And sometimes both of them met, when the inner music swirled out to grab hold of the outer music which was seeping in. More than songs, the emotions behind the songs were timeless, affirmation of old stuff: tears, laugther, making up, breaking apart, love, hate, motion, stillness, betrayals, bad cards dealt knowingly, acceptance and blessed peace that comes after all the storms clear up.

Music also enabled me to go that place in this entity called me, where not everyone I know have touched. It's a magical place, the fountain head, the essence of the creative soul, the madness of the madman, that walking on water. And via tonight's music I made this journey again. I am writing this because I need to extricate these shooting lava like emotionopoeticmusicalovemadness and place them before someone. But with changing circumstances since I find myself without that someone who can listen to me and think I am speaking is much different from the ususal perorations of the tongue, I put them here to be read. That's all.

This was a song that I shared with you and now I share it with myself and everyone else. This was a song which I sung along joyously tonight. And this is a song that will make me rememeber that joy that comes from knowing magic, whenever I just might begin to question why you have done what you have done to this entity called US. And this is for those who will hold my hand because they want to with all their heart and for those who will not let go of me beacuse of a thing called faith.

Peace.

2002:08:10 00:30 Atlanta

With a little love, and some tenderness We'll walk upon the water We'll rise above this mess With a little peace, and some harmony We'll take the world together We'll take 'em by the hand

'Cause I've got a hand for you 'Cause I wanna run with you

Yesterday, I saw you standing there Your head was down, your eyes were red No comb had touched your hair I said get up, and let me see you smile We'll take a walk together Walk the road awhile, 'cause

'Cause I've got a hand for you I've got a hand for you 'Cause I wanna run with you Won't you let me run with you? yeah

Hold my hand Want you to hold my hand Hold my hand I'll take you to a place where you can be Hold my hand Anything you wanna be because I wanna love you the best that, the best that I can

See I was wasted, and I was wasting time 'Till I thought about your problems, I thought about your crimes Then I stood up, and then I screamed aloud I don't wanna be part of your problems Don't wanna be part of your crowd, no

'Cause I've got a hand for you I've got a hand for you 'Cause I wanna run with you Ah, won't you let me run with you?

Hold my hand Want you to hold my hand Hold my hand I'll take you to the promised land Hold my hand Maybe we can't change the world but I wanna love you the best that, the best that I can, yeah

Hold my hand Want you to hold my hand Hold my hand I'll take you to a place where you can be Hold my hand Anything you wanna be because I...Oh...No, No, No, No, No

Hold my hand Want you to hold my hand Hold my hand I'll take you to the promised land Hold my hand Maybe we can't change the world but I wanna love you the best that, best that I can Oh, The best that I can

• Hootie and The Blowfish