The greatest advise came from Jesus Christ: “Love one another as I have loved you.” This is easier said than done. Most people do not even understand what this “love” is, that Christ was talking about. We are humans. We have an instinctive need to bond. We reach out to belong. We may not understand it, but we crave for this unity. Most of the time this need for unity does not use filters but simply instinctive attraction and the need to be attended to. Hence several types of social groups are formed. One preying on the other. Individual relationships are formed where one is domineering over the other. You see gentle and kind people and you see bullies.

Here is an acronym CORU, that may help: Care, Openness, Respect, and Understanding.

These four words can help simplify Christ’s advise and guide the individual towards loving someone and be one of the stewards of the universe. Every sentient being communicates and therefore needs to practice CORU.

Before any relationship is established, there is the initial “contact” point. For a couple this could mean “chemistry” from the first contact. First contact can be random, accidental, initiated or planned. For a relationship to continue and prosper there is always CORU.

• Care: If you care for something, someone, a pet, a career (job), a hobby, a sport, you health, your education, an idea or anything, you pay serious attention or consideration to doing, working or relating correctly to avoid hurting the individual, damaging the object or experience, or putting it at risk. If you care, you are nicer, you are kinder. Caring makes us a protector. Caring allows us to maintain the goodness. Caring invokes an emotional attachment. Caring leads to loyalty. Caring makes you steadfast at your tasks. Caring creates hobbies. Caring makes it easier to share your feelings, yourself or anything precious to you.
  
  • Students learn more when teachers care. A young child responds to emotions as we all do. Be nice. Caring helps maintain and build a relationship. When you care, it helps you to become more prudent. It is easier to be kind when your care. If we care, it helps us all get better.
  • A teacher communicates better and shares the knowledge better when there is care.
  • An employee is always more productive when she/he cares. An employer will always provide better working conditions and pay when there is care.
  • Indeed, for anything to endure or prosper—be it a possession, a relationship, or a career—care is essential.
• Openness: If you are open or transparent, you avoid cheating or lying, you avoid secrecy or concealment, you avoid the gnawing pains of loneliness and regrets. Openness helps build trust. Do not make the assumption that your opinion is not valid or that your words are meaningless. Voice it out with respect. Your are being straight forward or frank. Listen to both sides of the story before you conclude. Communicate with an open attitude and never take yourself or the other person for granted. A smile on your face makes it easier for others to open up.
  • The book of wisdom: Job 13:5 has been taken out of context: “Oh, that you would altogether be silent! This for you would be wisdom.” Silence (tranquility) is a great way to communicate with God. However, we are humans.
    • Our senses must be invigorated with touch or gesture, with words in speech or in writing. Open up. Communicate. You can’t build a relationship without communication. You can’t productively communicate without being open. You can’t build trust without communication. Never assume that someone already knows what you feel. Be open. A simple hello can lead to a nice conversation. A handshake or fist bump may lead to a meaningful hug. A wave of the hand in a friendly gesture can put a smile in someone’s face.
  • Openness does not mean expressing your opinions without “filters”. Be aware and sensitive to the feelings of other people. That is why you must first care before you open. This however, does not mean that you should avoid hurting others at all cost. Sometimes the facts must be laid out. But in doing so, you must always exercise prudence. Communicate.
• Respect: GIVE RESPECT. DO NOT EXPECT RESPECT. “Respect is to be earned, only if lost once given.” If everybody is expecting respect, how can there be respect for one another? On the other hand, if everybody gives respect, there will be no need to expect it. The only time that respect needs to be earned is when the respect that was kindly given was disrespectfully lost.
  • Anything done without respect is done either for the money, for a reward, as an obligation, out of tolerance, was told to, was forced to, was coerced to, or for vanity.
  • When you respect you are communicating. Opening the channels of communication puts the brakes on control. You are in control of yourself but not trying to control the way others behave. Trying to control others is one of greatest subtle ways of disrespecting others.
  • Respects allows us not to be judgemental. Do not make conclusions about the behavior of others without first knowing them.
• Understanding: To have compassion, patience, and sensitivity, for the action or words of the other person. To listen and comprehend, to communicate. To be prudent before reacting. Sometimes the person you care for may have made a mistake per your perception, but before you react or conclude try to understand the reason for her/his actions. That is why openness is important.

CORU must be tempered with attitude. Attitude is developed from childhood. Your past, your perception of your surroundings and events contributes to the development of your attitude. Attitude becomes embedded in our personality. People tell you to develop a positive attitude. “Don’t be negative” is what everybody hears when an opinion is contradictory. It is good to think about a positive attitude but it is not easy to do. So it is best to develop and “open” attitude.

Start the day with kindness to yourself and others. Being kind to yourself doesn’t mean that your are selfish, it is healthy way to start the day. Kindness to others can be in the simplest way of showing respect for the opinions of others or by talking in a softer tone of voice and not condescending. Allow others to express themselves without intimidation. Be nice. Niceness is the groundwork that sets the stage for more profound virtues like love, respect, and kindness. It’s a soft, approachable way of engaging with others, built on politeness, courtesy, and basic decency. Through niceness, we create the environment where other qualities—like love and respect—can thrive.

Temper has a nasty way of leading to anger and anger has a tendency to lead to disagreements and then escalate to an argument. Loving couples sometimes get entangled in this mess. This is easier said than done, but when you realize that the conversation is leading to a shouting match, it is time to take a deep breath and seriously ask yourself these questions, “Do I care about this person? Do I want to hurt this person? Are we hurting each other now? Why am I risking this relationship?” When you have the discipline to ask yourself these questions, chances are you are on your path to PRUDENCE.

Learn to walk away from disagreements even from bullies. But if a bully insists to be abusive (verbal, writing, gesture, or physical) and you are more than capable, then by all means give the bully an attitude adjustment.

Hone your skills in the art of CORU. By consciously practicing Care, Openness, Respect, and Understanding, individuals can actively cultivate love and create a powerful internal defense against the urge to inflict malice.

Stairway to Love

Love is often spoken of as the highest virtue—the summit of human ethics, the divine ideal, the ultimate goal. But too often, it’s presented as a finished product, a glowing abstraction we’re told to reach without being shown how to get there. We’re asked to “love thy neighbor,” yet rarely are we taught the steps that make such love possible—especially when that neighbor is a stranger, a rival, or simply someone we don’t understand.

Love, in its truest form, is not a commandment—it is a consequence. It is the result of practiced virtues, not a spontaneous emotion or a moral shortcut.

This is where CORU—Care, Openness, Respect, and Understanding—becomes the stairway. Each principle is a step upward, a discipline that prepares the heart to love not just instinctively, but intentionally.

• Care is the first step. It begins with attention and concern. You cannot love what you do not care for.

• Openness follows, allowing us to lower our defenses and make space for others’ truths.

• Respect is the structural beam—recognizing the dignity of others, even when we disagree or don’t relate.

• Understanding is the landing where empathy takes root, and love becomes not just possible, but inevitable.

This stairway is not theoretical—it’s lived. As a young man working the soil, I didn’t love gardening because I was told to. I loved it because I cared for the plants, respected the climate, was open to learning from failure, and understood the rhythms of nature. That’s when I realized: love grows from stewardship. It cannot be demanded. It must be cultivated.

Religious teachings often leap to the second floor—proclaiming love as the goal—without building the stairs. But Universal Stewardship offers a grounded path. When CORU is practiced daily, love is no longer a mystery. It becomes the natural result of ethical living.

And at the top of that stairway? A boiling pot—where the ingredients of CORU simmer into something greater than the sum of their parts. That’s love: not a command, but a concoction, patiently stirred by practice, seasoned by humility, and shared freely.

A Lifelong Practice of CORU

Childhood: The journey begins with kindness—teaching children to be nice, but not naïve. Discipline and respect toward responsible authority cultivate emotional grounding. In a classroom, CORU becomes a posture of engagement: care for learning, openness to new ideas, respect for teachers and peers, and understanding of diverse perspectives.

Adulthood: In the workforce and in relationships, CORU is the compass. It guides honest collaboration, responsible leadership, and meaningful growth. Adults are called not just to labor, but to listen—to really listen. Learning does not end with age; it evolves through feedback, dialogue, and shared experience.

Twilight Years: In senior life, CORU becomes deeper—less about progress, more about presence. Complaints turn to acceptance. Reflection becomes a teacher. The past is not a place of regret, but of lessons—carried forward with care and offered freely to the young. Elders who live through CORU become stewards of wisdom, showing that aging is not a decay, but a destination rich with meaning.

The Daily Attitude: CORU is not seasonal—it is habitual. In every interaction, every choice, every silence—it is the architecture of ethical living. It builds trust, preserves dignity, and welcomes growth.

The Steward’s Path

Universal Stewardship begins with one truth: to be kind is powerful. But kindness must grow into structure—and that structure is CORU.

From birth to legacy, the universal steward is not passive but engaged. Not fearful of judgment, but disciplined by care. CORU invites us all—young and old—not to fear the future, but to shape it with courage, ethics, and love.

Inspirational quotes

“The purpose of our lives is to be happy.” — Dalai Lama