Love.
It's so simple yet we make it so complex. And I am here to tell you that I see
love differently now, but I still believe in the power of true love, although I
am not sure I've ever experienced it. So this is what I know...
Self
Love. It's the cornerstone of everything. And I discovered some profound things
over the last year. This might be straight to the point, but this is what I
believe. So many of our previous relationships and experiences boil down to us,
not the other person. Yes, I know. Someone probably burned you...been there,
you thought a person was the one...but they weren't, your marriage didn't work
out, I understand. And I am not discrediting or downplaying any of these
relationships. Truly, if you knew my whole story, you would understand. But I
ask you, did any of those relationships make you feel worthy of love? Did you
feel truly happy? Were you fighting yourself more than that person? I believe
we choose how we let people treat us. I believe that we make the same mistakes
over and over again because we do not love ourselves enough to think we deserve
more. And if we come out of one type of relationship, we are usually right back
into the next one which mirrors the first. Why? Because we don't take time to
look in the mirror, pray to God, and find out what is really at the root of our
relationships. And here's the truth...it's YOU. It's ME. It's not about the
other person! We have to take time to know what we want out of life, get
through...not around certain pain, and be whole enough to decide what
relationships best serve us and what to walk away from. And you know how to do
that...look in the mirror and start asking some tough questions to yourself.
Pray on it, find some clarity ON YOUR OWN, and you will start to reemerge. And
when we find ourselves and truly what is best for us, that is when we have
achieved self-love. And this is when we find our truth. Without this, we have
nothing. And with it, we have everything. And once we have this, we can be
ready for more.
Unconditional
love. I believe that there are different kinds of unconditional love. It exists
in family, friendship, and the hardest part, with a partner. But it all comes
down to one thing, loving someone without boundaries and without reservation.
With family and friendship, it's easier because we do not put the same
expectation on the result. That love just is. But when it comes to a love
interest or relationship, we often stack it with stipulations and expectation
that something should be reciprocated on our terms. We have a vision of how the
other person should love in return. Unconditional love is about being so
steadfast in love that nothing can keep you from loving that person, but we
must give freely of ourselves which is scary and definitely a risk. I had to
learn that people love differently. When you read The 5 Love Languages,
we can see this and we must understand that someone else's unconditional might
not mirror ours. And the hard truth is some people just aren't ready to love
unconditionally and that's because they have not finished their journey of self
love. And at this point, we must decide whether to walk away or if that person
is worth taking the journey with. But both people have to love unconditionally
to even enter what I believe is true or soul-connecting love.
True
Love. It's about 100%. Not 50-50. It's loving yourself already enough to know
that you can can give 100% to someone else. It's the continuation of
unconditional love. It's about mind, body, and soul. A oneness. Not a passing
moment in time. It's true. It's real. Its completeness. It's a spiritual thing.
It's a God thing. And I believe it is possible for everyone when it's with the
right person at the right time. And so I leave you with no more perfect ending
than this:
Love
is patient, love is kind.
It
does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud.
It
does not dishonor others, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, it does not keep record of wrongs.
Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth.
It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres.
Love never fails.
1 Corinthians 13:4-8
Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth.
It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres.
Love never fails.
1 Corinthians 13:4-8
Where
there is love, there is life.
Natalie
Rene