Love is...

Mankind has gazed at the stars in wonder and we have asked ourselves "what are we here for?" and "why do we exist?" a myriad of times. Each of us set sail in a quest to find the purpose of our very existence, at some point in our lives. Once we have sailed far enough from the shores of reason, when the heart breaks free like a storm and the mind is blinded by lightning, the inexpressible truth descends upon us in all its glory; when we fall in love.

Some dismiss love as superficial, yet others try in vain to dig deep into their minds, hoping to know and understand it. Romantics say it is a journey they take to venture beyond their human confines into the perfect and ideal. "Love" is the moment some of us take to comprehend the purity and limitlessness of the divine. For yet others, it is their yearning to find their place within the measureless borders of the universe, in the warm embrace and familiar heartbeat of another.

When you fall in love, you fall asleep hugging a pillow, so that you could be with your beloved as you dream. Her eyes flash in yours when you wake up early morning, and her soft breath lulls you to sleep at night. You smile in your dreams as her sweet voice echoes in your ears. The thought of her excites you and makes you worry at the same time. You yearn to learn her favourite song and sing it softly to her ears and your hands ache to hold hers' and dance with her. Every time her smile adorns your day, you count your blessings and give thanks to your creator with all your heart, as much as every tear that fills her eyes, makes you want to change the world so that she would never ever have to cry again. It is all said to happen when you find in a stranger; your own lost identity. She makes you realize what you always wanted to be and at the same time, makes you feel appreciated for who you are. You fall in love when you see in her; the purpose why you were put here on earth and realize that life, with all its hardships, is still worth living. You find in her sweet smile the fountain of joy overflowing from your heart, running through your body and filling your soul. Then your heart leaps out; risking everything you have, for just a chance to touch the priceless pearl in her heart that you alone have found.

Love gives us the wisdom that seeks to understand our loved ones and not judge them; for love looks not with the eyes but with the heart.Love is an act of selfless giving without the hope of receiving anything in return and a drill where we learn to let go of all our own desires for those of our loved ones.

The person that you need to hold close and be with forever, is the very person you have to watch; disappearing over the distant horizon, but love; as it fosters your desire to possess, also should give you the strength to let go.

But how can I talk of love without talking of heartache, for was there ever a fire without heat. When you are in love, your tears will dry up far before your pain does. For love, as much as it would heal your heart will stab you in the depths of your soul; as much as it would give meaning to your life, will make you wish you were dead instead. As much as love is the promise of life's fulfilment of itself, so it is also a test of its worthiness. This is true, but only because love is worth all pain and all the tears you could ever cry, for love itself will give you the strength to endure, if you have but the faith to trust yourself and your beloved; though the whole world may doubt.

Love, as it grows will break its own dwelling place; your heart, like the snake sheds its own skin. Then when you mend the pieces of your broken heart with the glue of your faith, and tie a ribbon of hope around it, you will find that the chamber within your heart is larger than what it used to be and warmer for love to dwell with your beloved. Only if love finds you worthy, will it sting your heart with its precious and lethal venom, so that the swelling of your heart and the pain in the depths of your soul, you carry your mortal being into the world of the eternal, for love itself is eternal.

But what of those who choose not to love, in their fear of its pain and heartache? They may forever wonder, carrying the burden of their empty hearts where they would never laugh all their laughter or cry all their tears. This is but a shadow of what love is, grasped only by those who know the truth in every word.

It is not an ode to "love", but instead to the beautiful people who make us feel love and those who make us feel loved. They and they alone are more precious than love itself, for it is only through their lives that love reveals itself to us and lives on in our lives transcending the confines of both space and time.