Here's a interesting read.....

I Love You

In my opinion one of the most commonly used phrases among adolescents is "I love you." There are I love you's coming from thirteen year olds till the I love you's coming from newlyweds. What do these I love you's mean in today's society? Is there any truth behind them? What is love?

Society pushes love so greatly these days in movies, television, and teen magazines by displaying images of romance such as couples at candle-lit dinners and flowers, that teenagers feel the only way to express themselves is to say I love you. This truly ends up causing a great amount of hurt and sorrow in teenagers' lives. Being a teenager and not having yet lived through life to know the true meaning of love, how can you tell a person you love them at such a young age? It could only mean that there is no substance behind what s/he is saying. They might feel like they have such a strong love for each other and are going to spend the rest of their lives together, but are actually only to be putting themselves into a trap for heartbreak.

I heard a moving story in school that relates to this topic. There was a boy and girl who started dating seriously at a very young age. They became so attached to one another and the I love you's had already begun. Years and years passed and they felt that they were "basheret," or soul-mates. Around the age of eighteen, when time came to settle down, the boys parents did not allow. They felt that he had to go to college and get a medical degree while the girls parents demanded her marriage immediately. Unhappily they decided to go their own ways and start new lives for themselves. They both got married but never truly loved their spouses to the full extent that they should have. Each made aliyah to Israel, constantly thinking about their true love and wishing that they had been married…. In Israel they ended up becoming neighbors, and when they thought things were finally getting better they had never been worse! To be married to the person you feel is not your soul mate and to live next door to the one you wish was! If this relationship hadn't been started at such a young age maybe this heartbreak and depression could have been prevented. The two would probably be able to lead happy and productive lives without always questioning themselves. Most teenage I love you's and relationships are meaningless and should be prevented. Although there are exceptions why put yourself in a position for hurt when the desired outcome is so rare?

How can you define love? A teacher of mine once said love is giving. It is what you give of yourself to the other person, what that person takes, how much they give back to you, and how much you in turn take. He compared this to a plant growing. A man has a plant that he bought from the gardening shop. It had already grown and all he had to do was plant it into the soil. Then he has another plant that he's had for many years since he grew this one straight from the seed. Which plant does this man admire and adore, love more? The one that he grew from the seed of course! He gave this plant more of his affection, time and love than he did the other one that took a matter of five minutes to put together. The same goes for love between man and woman. It is a matter of affection and time until you can truly love a person. It is giving your every waking moment to "water" the seed and make sure its surroundings are proper. It is only with the best intentions, and right timing, as well as enough support and nurture that you can make this happen. Only then can you begin to say I love you.

Jennifer Sara Zar
[This message was edited Sun Feb 2 21:28:10 PST 2003 by WhateverGrace]

Alot of times I just don't think people really know what love is ... so this is another reason why it gets so confusing

And then there are different kinds of love:
plilia
agape
eros
familial

The first is brotherly love, the comraderie we feel for certain people.

The second, agape, is principled love...the kind of love we
feel for people we don't even know... the kind of love that
would cause us to do good to others without expecting a return.

The third, eros, is the romantic love we feel for a mate.

Familial, of course, is the love for family.

Whenever all four types of love merge into one for a person, and leads to marriage, it's a miracle.

Just my thoughts.

i wanted to know what love is


i think u just told me

SensualMelody said:

I hadn't heard that before. Quite fascinating. Thanks for that.