More than a Four Letter Word

by Debriana Anthony
(Florida)

Love is a feeling of warm attachment or deep affection. It’s a word that deserves loyalty and respect.

I know what love means because I’ve been in an affectionate relationship. Love means never having to say “What do you mean?” I abused it to the point where nothing could be done to mend my broken relationship.

I’ve asked that question many of times and now that I see what love really means, I have so many regrets.

What I didn’t know is that love is much more than just a four letter word. Love is a hug or kiss every day. Love is calling my one and only just to say that “I miss you.” Love is working through all of life’s problems, no matter what the circumstance.

I’ve also come to realize that it is important to stand in love, not fall in it. I learned how to do this the hard way.

Once I met my one and only I couldn’t help but to fall in love right then and there. Love at first sight is very deceiving. All I was focused on was the appearance and not the reality of falling in love.

At that time I defined love as meeting the person of your dreams and living happily ever after. Love is when my heart beats faster and faster every time I was in the presence of this unique being.

Love is a strong liking towards someone that I truly care for. Love is standing for something or falling for everything. It’s what I have to do when I don’t want to do it. Love is letting go of the person that I’ve loved for a long time. Love is thinking about what’s best for me and my soul mate.

Love is calling my one and only 3:00 in the morning. All because I can’t sleep, he stays on the phone with me and talks to me. Love is asking “What’s wrong?”, even if I didn’t reveal what was bothering me right away. Love is staying on the phone even if there is dead silence.

Love is automatically knowing what’s on my mind without saying a word. Love is coping with what I may think is impossible. It’s making an effort to do the impossible.

Love is calling someone back even if they hang up. My one and only actually called me back when I hung up on him once, twice, and a third time. Love is him telling me that he “just called to hear my voice.” No matter how upset I made him become, he was still there.

Love is telling each other that "we’ll be here through the good times and the bad."

I’ve noticed what love is not. Love is not lust. Love is not a craving; it does not just want something only some of the time. Love is wanting something 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. It’s expressing my mind at the end of a long and stressful day to my lover.

Love is not forgetting about life’s problems. It’s not just saying do better next time. It is not contradicting what someone has to say in order to help me. It’s not putting top priorities on the back burner. It’s dealing with the issues of my life and the one I care for.

Love is being there even when I don’t want to be. It’s not moving on without a care in the world. Love is carrying the weight of the world on my shoulders.

Love has so many meanings, and is much more than a four letter word. According to my past experiences I can differentiate from where I’ve been to where I’m going. I know what it is, as well as what it is not.

Love is trying to understand any and everything no matter how confused I may be. Love is giving, not taking. It’s a warm feeling that I get on the inside. It’s never being alone.

Love is staying up all night on the phone regardless of how tired I am. It’s being on the phone just because.

Love is a solution to life’s problems. Love is not a word that should be abused. Love is happiness, not sorrow. Love is what I can depend on. Love is there when nothing else is. It deserves more than loyalty and respect; love deserves your life.