30 Seconds of Passion

LARRY:   When life gives you lemons (or a Covid pandemic) – make lemonade.  When Covid hit, my wife Jula and I decided to turn our quarantine into a second honeymoon.  We made the most of the extra time we had together by being romantic and talked about areas of our relationship that we’d actively avoided. Well …after about 6 months of this second honeymoon, life threw us a few curveballs and the proverbial ‘honeymoon wore off.’  Some months later, I had a dream where I got the idea of “30 Seconds of Passion.”   

Linger

In practice, I pictured this “30 seconds of Passion” as just extending those daily interactions, touches, hugs and what not into a more meaningful 30 seconds.  It might be a neck rub or a hug. Instead of a kiss good-bye that’s just a peck in passing, you stop long enough for a kiss worth remembering.  Not everything changes, but a couple times a day our normal interaction is extended just a bit, so we know our relationship matters.  

Focus on Each Other

JULA:   When Larry told me about his dream, we talked about what 30 seconds of passion might look like and what it could do for our relationship.  We decided to give it a try.   

We developed a different mindset. The TV and computer were turned off, so we could focus and listen to each other, waiting to hear the full sentence before responding to what the other is saying. It should look like making time for each other with a positive attitude and trying to focus just on the moment, to lean into the touch, to enjoy the embrace. 

Physical Affection

LARRY:   Sometimes it’s a passionate kiss backed by longing. Other times, there’s just an extended caress, while we give up the project we’re focused on.  Tensions leave as we hug, and our bodies just melt together.  It’s saying “YES” to each other, and for 30 seconds you’re the most important thing in my world. We’ve both developed a feeling of hopeful anticipation. Practicing this technique has led to less tension between us, more communication, and a bit more joy in the house.  

Pay it Forward

JULA:    There seems to be so much negative in the world around us. These ‘30 Seconds of Passion’ moments have become our way of doing something positive to counteract all of that.  It’s been a perplexing year and we want to share this with others to offer some encouragement for all our family and friends.   

LARRY:   I’m hoping this touches some who are feeling isolated.  It seems like the right thing to do.  We want to Pay it forward for all we have been given. 

How you develop “30 seconds of passion” in your relationship will be different than us, but we hope you’ll give it a try. Enjoy! 

See a few other articles on passion: Come on Baby Light my fire, What Happened to our passion?, and What are You Passionate About?

*Thank you to our guest authors Larry and Jula Galvin!