On Unconditional Love
Love is very difficult for us to define. We often will not invest our energy in love that isn’t reciprocal, and if we do it’s because we’re trying to fill a void. Sometimes we avoid love, either because we do not trust that it is real and without negative consequences, or because we feel we do not deserve it. Sometimes, when we love someone, we hurt them because we want them to love us so bad in return that we push them beyond their limits. Sometimes we hurt others because, in saying we don’t deserve love, we deny others the opportunity to express their very real love for us. They, in turn, feel left in the dark. Sometimes we set ourselves to extremely high standards. We think that if we meet those standards, it automatically means we deserve a love from a specific person or group of people. Other times, we feel we are unable to meet those standards and are therefore unworthy of love. The truth is, in order to truly understand what it means to love others, we must learn to love ou...