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....when we are loved, 
the people who love us want us to be 
what we are, not what they are. 
They rejoice in the fact that we are growing 
with our ideas, our dreams, our uniqueness, our future. 
They want us to be independent and free,
not submissive and afraid. 
The people who love us want to simplify our existence, 
not by protecting us from pain, 
but by being there when we need them. 
They encourage risk because they understand 
that by risking we continue to grow. 
They help us to find alternatives for behavior, 
rejoicing in our success and comforting us in our failure. 
They are not only lovers, but friends, 
loyal and willing to make allowances for our imperfections. 
They can be counted upon for support and companionship. 
~Felice Leonardo Buscaglia~

Felice Leonardo Buscaglia, often called Leo Buscaglia, was an American author, lecturer, and educator. Leo Buscaglia was born in 1924 to Italian parents in Los Angeles. Buscaglia had ten siblings. He and his family spent much of the first few years of his life in Italy. Upon returning to California the family lived in a house with one bathroom....he once said "Try that sometime!" At the age of five, Buscaglia was tested for public school. He could speak Italian, an Italian dialect, some French and German, but because he couldn't speak English he tested out as mentally retarded. He was put in a special class....and loved it. He excelled in his studies. He loved his teacher. He remarks that he did "all kinds of learning for this woman because I loved her." His "great" work drew attention to him and he was retested....and moved to a regular class!!! In his words he "was bored for the rest of my educational career." 

During Buscaglia's school years he was often called unpleasant names by other children, because he was Italian and labeled "retarded" at an early age. His mother believed garlic could ward of all sorts of ailments, and so he had to wear garlic around his neck each day. Buscaglia's father required his children to learn a new fact each day. At the dinner table he would have to tell his father what he had learned that day. This became such a habit with Buscaglia that, even in his later years, he writes that when he would retire for the evening he would think about what he had learned new that day. Buscaglia spoke fondly of his mother and father whenever he recounted his childhood. In his book Love, he says, "This book is dedicated to Tulio and Rosa Buscaglia, my father and mother who were the best teachers of love, because they never taught me, they showed me." 

During World War II, Leo Buscaglia served in the US Navy for three years. Then he attended the University of Southern California in Los Angeles. In 1950 he received a Bachelor's degree in English and speech from USC. In 1963, he received a Ph.D. in language and speech pathology, also from USC. During this time he worked in the public school system as a teacher and speech therapist. For awhile he was the supervisor for special education in the Pasadena school system. In 1965, he began working at USC in the special education department. 

In the later part of the 1960's Leo Buscaglia sold all he owned and traveled to Asia. He was curious about religion and wanted to "compare Zen Buddhism and Hinduism to his own Christian faith." He concluded "You can be a follower of Muhammad or Jesus or Buddha or whomever. Always they said that the most essential factor is to love your neighbor. And to love you." He returned to teach at USC and remained there until 1984. During this time he began his non credit "love" class. It began as a small informal class. As people attended they were getting so much from the class, they would invite their spouse, parent, sister, friend to attend with them. So Leo Buscaglia began his lectures about love....and began traveling to talk about love. He didn't look at the classes as teaching love, but discussing love. Some of his lectures were even televised.

During his life Buscaglia wrote books about love, death, and even a cookbook....he loved food :-) Several of his books were on The New York Times Best-Seller lists. These were, Love, Personhood, Living, Loving, and Learning, The Fall of Freddie the Leaf, and Loving Each Other. A few other books he wrote were, Bus 9 to Paradise, Seven Stories of Christmas, and Leo Buscaglia's Love Cookbook. Buscaglia is a wonderful storyteller. His books about love are full of colorful personal experiences with his family, friends, co-workers, and students. His book The Fall of Freddie the Leaf is an excellent book about the process of life, explaining death. Buscaglia said "When one makes peace with death -- the meaning and preciousness of life become crystal clear." In other books, Buscaglia encourages readers "to love" never considering the consequences or the reward only the personal joy received from loving. In Born for Love, Buscaglia wrote "It is when we ask for love less and begin giving it more that the secret to human love is revealed to us." Buscaglia often said "God's gift to you is life itself. What you do with it is your gift to God." He wrote "I love to think that the day you're born, you're given the world as your birthday present." And "It's just full of love and magic and life and joy and wonder and pain and tears....your gifts for being human. Not only the really happy things....there's a lot of pain in there....a lot of magic, and wonder, a lot of confusion....that's what life is. And all so exciting." 

When asked to define love, Buscaglia would say, "Noooo! But if you follow me around I'll try to live it." However in his book Living, Loving, and Learning he said, "I'm really convinced that if you were to define love, the only word big enough to engulf it all would be 'life.' Love is life in all of its aspects." And in Bus 9 to Paradise he said this of love "One of the most beautiful descriptions I've ever read is from Corinthians I, and even as well known as it is, is still well worth repeating: Love is patient and kind; love is not jealous or conceited or proud; love is not ill mannered, or selfish, or irritable; love does not keep a record of wrongs: Love is not happy with evil but is happy with the truth. Love never gives up: its faith, hope, and patience never fail. Love is eternal...There are faith, hope and love, these three; but the greatest of these is love." 

Leo Buscaglia often commented about the mispronunciation of his name. All three of his names were often mispronounced anything from Phyllis to Boxcar. The correct pronunciation of Felice Leonardo Buscaglia is Feh-LEE-chay, Lee-on-ard-o, BOO-skall-yuh :-) He "loved his name." Buscaglia had many nicknames....Dr. Hug, Dr. Love, Hug Doctor, King of the Hug, and even Love Merchant....all inspired by his personal approach to love. He taught that you need to look at people when you talk, you need to listen, and touch. Buscaglia's response to never marrying...."He opted to embrace all humankind rather than an individual or two." 

Larry Davis, special education teacher once introduced Buscaglia to a group by saying, "When I looked up love in the dictionary, I saw a picture of Leo Buscaglia." Mr. Davis goes on to say of Buscaglia, "He touched untold numbers with his insights into how we seek happiness and create loving relationships." Dr. Felice Leonardo Buscaglia died on June 12, 1998. Earlier, Leo had requested these words be on his tombstone: "HERE LIES LEO, WHO DIED LIVING!"

In the last analysis, 
the only things of real value are the people we have loved, 
the acts of goodness we've performed, and the ways in which we've left the world a better place for generations to come.
~Leo Buscaglia....Felice Leonardo Buscaglia~

Leo Buscaglia Quotes

Bus 9 to Paradise Quotes

On Love: Excerpt from Bus 9 to Paradise

On Thankfulness: Excerpt from Bus 9 to Paradise

  Collection of Love Quotes

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