What is Love?

What does love really mean?
Is it a metaphor?
Is it a simile?
Or is it just a word people use to say they care more than average about something?
People use it to say they like something extremely well. Like someone loves spring, or they love chocolate, or they love dogs. But do they really love them?
People say love is a strong word, but so is hate.
They say everyone feels love, but do they?
Is life really about love?
Or is there something else entirely, that we all missed by a long shot?
Now I'm not the kind of person that when asked, "if you could have one wish what would it be?" and answer WORLD PEACE.
I'm sorry but in case you haven't looked around lately or even read a history book, that hasn't ever happened and probably won't. Unless someone made something that could change our brains so that everyone got along, like int he book series "Uglies" by Scott Westerfeld, then don't hold your breath. But maybe, just maybe, we could make the world better if we started thinking about others feelings before we thought about ourselves. But love contrasts with this idea. If we fall in love with someone and they love you back, then you are both happy. But if you fall in love with someone and someone else falls in love with you, then you have a problem. I know what you're thinking, "How do you know you are in love with someone, you haven't even explained what love really means?" Well here it is straight out of the dictionary. Love: noun, an intense feeling of deep affection; a great interest or pleasure in something. But that can't be all love is, can it?
Maybe its not, I've asked many people what they think love is, one said not wanting to be with anyone else, or not wanting to be away from that person. Another said, looking at them and getting to know them, and knowing they are perfect, that they are exactly what you've been looking for. But one person surprised me. When I asked him he answered with the following, "Love, wow that's a strong word. Let's see, Love, is wanting to be with someone, not wanting to leave them, wanting to be with them forever, wanting them to be happy, so you would put their feelings before your own."