On Love, With a Whole Bunch of Questions

Questions on love, crushes and some major confusion.

 

Love.

 

What a strange, overused, underrated, misinterpreted word.

 

How do you know if you truly love someone? Is love something that occurs in an instant (the popularly clichéd ‘love at first sight’), something that develops over time, or is it something that can withstand the test of time?

 

Beyond that, though, what is it, exactly? What makes it different, what makes it better, than lust or craving or obsession or hormonal-based crushes?

 

Is loving someone knowing you would die for them – thus leaving them all alone? Is it never wanting to be apart from them – thus being a hindrance to their own lives? Is it because they’re attractive – what about early in the mornings, when they’re sick or when they grow old? Is it just wanting them to be happy – and possibly harming yourself in your attempt to ensure their own happiness? (On that note, what if they ‘love’ you by that definition, and only want YOU happy? Could that just lead to a situation that spirals out of control, or would the two come to terms with it?)

 

Is it when, after so many months, they’re still unaware of your existence because you’re too afraid you’ll embarrass yourself? Is it because, even after these months of being unintentionally ignored, there’s still something in them that no one else could ever have?

 

Some say that love is knowing someone inside and out, accepting their flaws and still “loving” them. Isn’t that the same thing as friendship, though? In that case, would ‘love’ qualify as someone being your best friend? (If that’s true, why aren’t all teenage girls lesbians many times over?)

 

Or is it something else entirely?

 

Is it something that’s subjective? Does it vary depending on who falls into it? Does everyone fall in love?

 

On that note, if you truly fall in love, can you get back up? With lust and crushes and flings, you can, but can you do the same with love? Or do you, perhaps, fall into crushes and rise into love? Is there a limit? Can you top off or bottom out, or does it go on forever?

 

Is it finite, definite, infinite? Can others see it? Can you see it? Can you feel it? Or is it more like air – you can’t find it with any of your senses, but you can’t live without it?

 

How do you know if you’ve fallen in love? What if the person you think you’re in love with doesn’t love you back? Is it truly love? Or is a reciprocal necessary for it to really qualify as ‘love?’

 

Can you not know love until you’ve experienced it?

 

Or is love writing out a two-thousand word essay-esque thing composed almost entirely of confused questions and removing three fourths of them because the person in question deserves so much better, so much more, than what those words could have ever truly expressed – so much better than what any words could ever truly express?

 

If that’s true, then I’ve got a monopoly on it.

Author's Note

Can anyone relate to this? I really hope I'm not alone with these mixed up teenage hormonal issues. -sigh- By the way, please ignore any spelling/grammar/syntax errors. True to the last paragraph, I deleted a lot of the original... If there seems to be a gaping hole somewhere or weird phrasing, that's probably why. I'll go back and fix it later, I promise.

Reviews

[turtlegirlluver]

Wow, I can relate soooooooooooo much. It seems like you crawled into my head and wrote about what I feel too. I love how you go through all the thoughts and feelings that fall under love.
"How do you know if you've fallen in love? What if the person you think you're in love with doesn't love you back? Is it truly love?"
This part really sticks out to me. Anyway, good job!

[SM Davis]

Love, true love is not a feeling. It's a choice. I choose to love ... love IS a commitment, but it's larger than "I have feelings for you" "I'll die for you" "You rock my world" and so on. LOVE is choosing to love without condition. It is I love you enough....not I love you because....

When you love someone you love them enough to find their own path. You love them enough to grow ... even if it means they grow a different way than you do. Love is for everyone. That's true love. The other is infatuation, jealousy, and selfishness. You can't love and be selfish. It defies the definition of love.

[fionnaiscool]

Cool view point. And no, ur not the only one. Ill bet many people wonder the same (including me). But i think this would better go under "essay".