A while ago I had an e-mail from a person who wanted me to write
a poem about true love. I sat down that same evening and started
writing, but stopped after the first few lines. It is difficult
to describe love in just a few sentences, for it really is a
combination of so many different emotions. Some learned people
would probably think I'm not qualified to talk or write about
the subject. If so, I beg to disagree, because love has got
nothing to do with education. The God of love created us,
therefore, we have the ability to love. In fact, from the day we
were born we experienced it. Rich, poor, male, female and even
animals get that special feeling for someone or something. We
love our parents, siblings, children, friends, animals, objects,
substances and even imaginary people. Then there is, of course,
the love of your life; the one you would like to share the rest
of your life with.Young lovers, if you plan to get married
and the Lord grant you sixty or more years on this earth, please
note that for the most part of your natural life you will have
to live with a total stranger. As if it wasn't difficult enough
coping with your relatives and close friends, you now have to
get used to sharing everything with a person who was not raised
by your parents. Believe me, it is not always easy, but it can
be done if you truly love the lucky man or woman who you happen
to fall in love with. There is, however, one important rule:
Love your fellow man as you love yourself. I firmly believe it
is impossible to love another person if you don't respect and
love yourself, flaws, imperfections included.
When you are between the ages of naught to ten, you
absolutely hate the opposite sex. They are just the nastiest
creatures you have to share you breathing space with. Then some
day you look in the mirror and see a slightly different you.
Girls discover they have growths protruding from their chests,
and boys notice the hangers are larger that normal. To make it
worse, a fine layer of fur is growing in the strangest places.
One day you look like a pole, and the next, you see curves and
bulges and you begin to look more like a teenager. Now you look
at the opposite sex differently. Out with the frilly dresses, in
with the short, body fit clothes to show off your new figure.
Mum and Dad become 'the old people', little brother a nuisance,
little sister a cry baby and you find yourself in a different
time zone, on a different planet. The planet of the birds and
the bees.
Now let's get to the moonlight and roses. When you see a
certain person, do you have the following symptoms: Heart skips
a beat, butterflies in the tummy, weakened knees, stutter, loss
of speech, loss of appetite, loss of concentration, sleepless
nights, daydreaming? You are in love, my dear. The question is:
is it true love? Be careful. Think it through. It could be a
crush, physical attraction, pity or any of the other forms of
affection you are experiencing. When you are young it is normal
to fall in and out of love. It also happens to older people,
who, one should think, knows what real love is all about. Adults
are also human, though.
Let me introduce you to Mary. She was only fifteen years of
age when she fell in love with a guy ten years her senior. He
was not the sexiest man she has ever met, but he was gentle,
soft-spoken and in her books a very charming gentleman.
Unfortunately he was a married man and also her teacher. For
weeks she dreamed about having some sort of a relationship with
him. It didn't last very long, for she met someone else, also
older than her. He knew she had a crush on him, and not wanting
to hurt her feelings, he was always very kind to her. The
problem was, he treated her like a child and she hated it. Well,
she was still a child. Another couple of weeks of daydreaming
about an older man who had his eye set on another girl who was
prettier and much maturer than Mary. Soon she grew tired of this
game and decided to concentrate on her studies, instead of
falling in and out of love with the opposite sex. Being a
teenager, she moved in the teenage circles, and came into
contact with young, attractive men. She was bound to meet some
hunk her own age. The first young man Mary was attracted to,
were two or three years older than she was. Dark, tall and
handsome. Storybook perfect. Every morning she would wait at the
entrance of the school so she could see him, and she tried her
best to attract his attention, but all in vain. He didn't even
notice her, and her poor little heart was broken. Not for long,
though. She used to like the way he strolled up the pathway on
his way to school. Very casual, nonchalant and at ease. After a
while she realized that he did everything in slow motion, and
that included talking. Gone with the attraction. The poor guy
had an imperfection, she forgot that she was not perfect, and he
merely became one of the crowd. Mary thought she was in love
with someone, but when she learnt about his flaw, she could not
accept it. That was definitely not true love.
To be continued.
Until next time
Butterfly.
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