Something pure. Something true.

What is love?

That question, reminiscent of a 90s house song... It holds so much weight. I bet many philosophers and laymen alike have pondered over centuries about the meaning of this word that is all too often thrown around.

Love...

It will bring you higher than the clouds...
Then have you plunging lower than the depths of the sea in a bewilderment,
wondering what went wrong and,
"if only things could be different would the outcome change?"

I know I'm not the only one who has wondered, "what am I doing throwing myself in front of buses for this person?"

It is this emotional wreck that comes from sacrifice and investment of time that has me contemplating why in the world, or even universe, would one ever put oneself through the torture.

There is beauty though. A certain beauty from pain that keeps the heart pumping, driven by each step towards forever or any hint of hope.

But does it even take a glimpse of that hope that there will be a future together? Is that true love?
A conditional clause dependent on reciprocation of emotions?

I am convinced that love is something more.

It is not simply flowery words that flatter and stir up emotion.
I believe it is a dedication, a learning experience, and a beautiful display of faithfulness and sacrifice.

I am starting to see that it takes a patient ear combined with a pensive and sensitive mind that considers the other's thoughts and feelings in the hardest of circumstances. It takes a commitment and a conviction that goes beyond the mindset that there is always something better and beyond the thinking that if things start to falter you can just move on. It takes forgiveness. It takes time.

Love is mysterious and we may never fully understand that grand mystery,
The force that compels young ones to travel great distances in an attempt to reunite,
The concoction that causes grown men to act like fools,
It may never be possible to put this concept into words that can accurately express the emotions it incites....
But it may always cause the world to stop and notice when the purest of loves is displayed.