Marissa Moran
Perone
English 10 GATE- 2
“What is Love?” Let yourself be drawn of the strange pull of what you love. It will not lead you astray. Love is a supernatural force of nature. However we may want to, we cannot command, demand, or take away love any more than we can command the moon, the stars, and the wind to come and go according to our whims. Love exists bigger than you are. You can invite love, but you cannot dictate how, where, or when love expresses itself. You can choose to surrender to love, or not, but in the end love stands like lightning: unpredictable and irrefutable. Love does not come with conditions or codes. Like the sun, love radiates of our fears and desires. Love cares what becomes of you because love knows that we are all interconnected. Love remains inherently compassionate and empathetic. Love honors that the “other” is also oneself. This is the true nature of love and love itself cannot be manipulated or restrained. Love honors the sovereignty of each soul. Love stays its own law. Everyone says love hurts, but this statement can be proven false. Loneliness hurts. Losing someone hurts. Envy hurts. Everyone seems to get these concepts confused with love. I too used to be confused. But, then I realized, love was the only thing in this world that covers up all the pain and makes someone feel wonderful again. It’s those funny memories that we randomly remember and we can’t help but smile. “You know you're in love when you can't fall asleep because reality is finally better than your dreams.” ― Dr. Seuss Everyone also states that love feels like the wind, you can’t see it, but you can feel it. This statement also stands as a false accusation. You can see love everywhere. You see love when a mother kisses her child goodnight or when a father lifts his little girl into the air. You can see love in something as simple as a hug. Love energies all around you; you just have to take a minute to stop and take a look around. You will then see that love is laughter. Love is the tear shed for another one’s grief. Love shows the smile you get from a good morning or goodnight text. Here lie just a few examples of love. Greeks stated that there are four kinds of love: storge, phileo, eros, and agape. There are four different forms or styles of expressing love. So, to describe these styles, the Ancient Greeks came up with these four terms to symbolize the four types of love. Storge represents the kind of family and friendship love. This shows the love that parents naturally feel for their children; or the love that friend feel for each other. In some cases, this friendship love may turn into a romantic relationship. Storge love is unconditionally, accepts flaws or faults, and ultimately drives you to forgive. It’s committed, sacrificial, and makes you feel secure, comfortable, and safe. Phileo love refers to the affectionate, warm, and tender platonic love. It makes you desire friendship with someone. Although you have an agape love for your enemies, you may not have a phileo love for the