Love is a strange, hard to explain, well it's an emotion. We feel it and we believe it is there, but at what point does it mean you are meant for someone, that you are soul mates? What defines the person we are "meant" to be with forever? Is it a connection? A friendship? The right attitude? Similar beliefs? Our interests?
Many believe our purpose in life is to ultimately procreate (maybe you are right). When we break it all down it appears we (humans) are all connected by our emotions. The institution of marriage itself is scary for most... I think instead of wondering if it will last forever, you have to make it last with our/your conscious efforts and the willingness to give to your chosen partners. Marriage should always be a 50/50 balance between spouses. Life is not easy for anyone and love is not any easier. Why make it harder on ourselves?
I've previously been hurt many times by the “lust” of what the younger version of me felt what LOVE was. I'm sure we can all relate to the same situations. I no longer have the patience for the games people will play with each other because of what our society has played up the bachelor/bachelorette status to be. A challenge to a younger reader to have for their said love: Can you (the man) see inside me (no not literally), beyond my looks to find who I am and what I can be? The bigger question is, Will you? When you know beyond a doubt that the man/boy you love can see you for you, you've found a special one!
Love comes in all shapes an sizes. It is not just about loving someone as your significant other, maybe it is the love of a parent, grandparent, cousin, sibling, child, or a friend. oh, but a child's love is like no other. They have yet to discover the pains and heartaches that come and go through life. They know not what death is. Their love is pure and unconditional, and they long for your kind words and loving arms to wrap them up and make them feel safe. How can we show someone what love is that has been striped of love? I look around me every day and see the beauty of life and nature and wonder how some people can turn to violence and crime. Have you ever tried to imagine what kind of life people lead to become that way? Even stealing, raping, fighting, it is all something beyond my view of the world. I find it hard to believe people can be that selfish, but I also know there are things beyond control like addiction that can take over an amazing person and turn them into someone ugly, even they don't even recognize themselves anymore. Maybe I have a big heart or maybe I am naive, but either way I wish I could somehow reach out to those, who for a moment even consider doing such things, to show them what life can be like if they made a choice to take a different path. If only they step out of their current situation and look beyond... look at what could and can be. We should all work together to make it a place worth living in; a place we all can enjoy.
Do I know people that have turned to violence and a life of crime, yes. I love some of these people with all my heart. I want so much to change their world with a swish of a wand, but I have no magic powers and that would be too easy. I truly believe that only you can change who you are, where you are, and what you do in your life. You can look to others for support and encouragement. At the end of the day, only you can choose to make that change, only YOU. So if you know the same kind of people I speak of, and you love them, offer them love (not money, they can get a job or find work) and maybe you can help change the person they've become, the person they do not want to be. No need for lectures, I'm sure you've given them and they haven't really REALLY listened. No need for telling them about what they've done wrong, they know. No need for looking back on the past, rather focus on the future, because their future is worth it.
Leon Brown said, "The love you give today, is an investment in the future, for the future is seeded by what you sow today." It's never too late to Love.
Whatever the reason or the person you chose to love, I hope you do it with all your heart and give it 100%. Do you know someone who could use a little love and a lot less lecture?