Love. It’s the most powerful force in the world. It is the subject of hundreds of movies and thousands of songs. It’s so many different things and so many people have their own definition of love. There are just so many different kinds of love and so many different ways to love. There’s a scene in an episode of Orange is the New Black where the inmates are all describing what love is. With a variety of answers, each one holds truth and sentiment. Touched by the inmates answers, a mission was conceived to see what our friends and loved ones thought about love. Here’s what was found.
“Love is finding that person that you have such strong feelings for you would do anything to protect them and make them happy. They are your first thought in the morning and your last at night. Their success means more to you than your own. The thought of life without them seems cold and vacant. You want to experience every aspect of life with them. She needs to be your Bonnie if you are Clyde.”
“I guess it would be an unconditional appreciation.”
“Love is not a feeling, it is a choice. Love is relentless. It does not leave when times are hard. It endures. It is kind, humble and forgiving. Love is sacrificial, and it is unconditional. It cannot be earned or lost because when you love someone, their happiness is placed above yours, and you choose to love them no matter what…through the good and the bad. It is a daily choice to place someone else’s needs and desires above yours.”
“I believe there’s two kinds of love: intimate love and family love. Intimate love means not wanting to fall asleep because you want to spend as much time with the partner as possible. It means trust and forgiveness and selfless care. Family love means immense gratitude for parents, siblings or best friends. You’re always there for them and love them no matter what.”
“When I think of love the first thing that comes to mind is the sickening feeling of waiting for it to end. You’re waiting for something to go wrong. It’s something that children read in stories.”
“Love is more than a word you say about your favorite pizza. It’s an action. The most powerful action any human performs. When you love someone, you kiss them, hug them, care for them and protect them regardless of the damage and costs you yourself will take. To me, love knows nothing of worldly boundaries such as religion, race or gender. To bind yourself to these restrictions just makes it a plain, overused word.”
“Love is never giving up on the one you love.”
“I think love is when you’re so close to someone, that you would do anything for them. When you care for someone, more than you care for yourself. Like, I love my mother and would do anything for her, ya know? Like I would give her a kidney if she needed it. I mean I don’t know, I guess you can “love” everyone but as far as real love, I think that’s something that you don’t have for a lot of people throughout your life.”
“Love to me is being with someone you can’t imagine a day without. I believe that when the moment comes, you have the feeling that someone is ‘the one’. You need to be ready to experience their interests and also share yours. I once heard, ‘ it’s not about who you want to spend Friday night with, but who you want to wake up beside on Saturday morning’.”
“Love is a feeling that is truly amazing. Love is seeing your dog after a rough semester in college and just sitting on the couch with them just chillin’ because somehow they know exactly how you’re feeling. It is truly expecting nothing in return but the willingness to give everything you have. It is to be vulnerable. Love is the understanding that something other than ourselves is important and is worth it.”
“It means being able to look past the bad in a person and still see the good. Knowing that no matter what you have done there is always a place where someone will hold you and hug you and tell you it will all be okay.”
“To me, love is when another person’s happiness becomes your own happiness. I also feel that you are more yourself when you are with the people you love, whether they are loved ones or significant others.”
“I think love is when someone can make you really happy no matter what kind of you’re having. Meaning they offer you unlimited grilled cheese and love your dog just as much as you.”
“When I think of love, I think of pouring yourself into a relationship. When you love someone, you are sacrificial. Most importantly you are selfless. Love also goes hand in hand with forgiveness. I understand that many people do not know how to show love due to never have been shown it themselves or because of whatever has happened in their past, but even then the desire to show these attributes lies within when love is present. The point is we are nothing without love. ‘We can do or say anything, but if we don’t love then it all means nothing’. (Corinthians 13:1-3) Love is what makes all of our actions and words real and worthwhile. It’s the reason behind why we are able to be anything other than the truly selfish and uncaring human beings we originally are.”
So, love clearly means many things. Many different, all unique and beautiful things. Love is a beautiful thing. It truly is the only thing in this world that can provide relief from the cruel world that we live in. Love yourself, love one another in every sense of the word.