To love & be loved
A euphoric rush with butterflies in our stomachs or the “expectation is the root cause of heartache” kind of emotion, two ways to describe love. When you think of love, you think of childlike laughter and fun, you think of madness and light in our hearts, the sparkle of happiness in our eyes, living for days chasing thrills like carefree teenagers. It’s freedom and a beautiful mess. On the other hand it’s a search for our other half who enriches our personalities and helps us become better versions of ourselves — leaving each other a little better than when you found one another.
It starts off with one look, one smile and one conversation to provoke that fuse within us. Rationality goes out the window and our vision is a magnificent blur. But the real intensity of emotions comes into play when you go beneath the surface, to dig into one’s soul, to crack through the barriers one has built up due to fear. Fear to open up about everything running through our minds, our deepest worries, sorrows, joys and dreams. To be understood, to be ourselves and to be liked despite all the turbulent battles within us. To feel less alone in the world and most importantly to be accepted for who we are.
If it were only simple to love one another. Modern complexities of earning a living have brought about their own problems of stress, anxiety, depression and self- loathing. Distorting our realities that we are no longer able to express ourselves. You become a different person. However our communities are getting better, such as women practicing self-acceptance because of realistic images on social media rather than an idealized body or face.
Self-love that’s the missing and connecting piece between two individuals. As they say “You can’t pour from an empty cup”- we can’t share what we don’t have. So the mindful practice of being kind and soft to ourselves is crucial for our energy and whom we share it with but sometimes we tend to forget due to our daily hectic routines. After all we are human — We make mistakes.
This is where we start to dissect each part of our being ,to look within, to reflect at our choices, to understand how we have become the way we are and the way we see things. Shaped by family, society, ideas, opinions and experiences, every encounter shifts how we see the world. When we were young and innocent we saw life as it is — pure. It was easy as we didn’t have external references. Gradually we are taught what is right, wrong, good and bad. We begin to view the world differently — refraction and dispersion occurs of your values, beliefs and behaviors. We get lost in a whirlwind of new concepts. Like light hitting a diamond, the minute it hits it’s broken into a rainbow of colors with a sparkle.
Common interests, culture, religion, habits, behaviors and compromise come into question. This is where things start to fall apart. Whether we are able to adapt to ones way of life. We also begin to search for meaning, purpose, direction and hope of being helped by our other half. But when you look at the bigger picture it’s a simple need to be cared for and enjoy life with someone else.
What does love mean to you? I would love to know your thoughts. Wishing you a year filled with happiness, smiles and learnings!
