The Cost of Love
Love is one of the most used, yet one of the most misused
words in the universe. It could be a source of total joy and fulfillment, yet,
an absolute source of pain and misery. I am not an expert on the topic but I
have been on both sides and that is why I have an opinion. Love is many things.
There is no single definition of love. Antoine De St Exupery wrote: “True Love
begins when nothing is looked for in return”. As far as I am concern, he
couldn’t be more right. Whether it’s Agape(Unconditional love), Philia(Love between
friends), or Eros(Romantic love).
There are many questions I would love to ask about love;
should there be a price tag on love? Do I have to work for it? Or does it just
come to me freely? Do I deserve to be loved? What is the real value of
love? Do I have to give love to get love
in return? I could go on and on but I’m sure you get the picture. We all wonder
from time to time. Some more than others.
It is often said that “There can be no love without giving”,
while I accept and believe this, I also don’t accept that love has to be
objectified. In our society today, we have reduced love to jewelry, flower
bouquets and boxes of confections. Love is much more than that.
Some people go the extra mile to do things for others so
that they can get love in return. They know if they mess up, it’s gone. They
“walk on egg shells” just to make sure that they can be loved. If that is love,
it comes at much too high a cost. When you love someone, it should be for no
other reason than love itself. No conditions.
No strings attached. In our self indulgent world, selfless love sounds
so unreachable and impossible. More like a fairy tale.
Love, the kind that is real doesn’t come gift-wrapped on
Valentine’s Day. It is not a momentary outburst of emotion. It is complete
selfless, sacrificial and unconditional. I’ve read and watched many sappy love
stories and in as much as I am a fan, I have arrived at the conclusion that
there is no greater love than the love of Christ. He made the ultimate
sacrifice.
When you fall in love, In order to make room for new love
interests, your circle shrinks. Everything in your life starts adjusting to
include you new partner. The idea of personal space is greatly changed and
adjusted. There are things and people you have to give up so that your new
relationship has enough breathing space. Some of the other relationships start
to deteriorate till they become none existent which means you sacrifice love to
get love. In other instances, you bend over backwards to make some other person
feel loved. You give up what you cherish to make room for another. That is
sacrifice. That is love.
Every human being has the great need to be recognized, loved
and heard. Some find that love in life. Others don’t. As far as I am concerned,
there shouldn’t be a price tag on love. We should all find some way to give
love and I’m sure we’ll experience it in return.
Xoxo…Gwen Ntumngia
No comments:
Post a Comment