A question needs to be answered, “Have you ever been in love?” For the feeling is not something that words can describe to you. It is so vast an emotion that it completely overwhelms you. It is the greatest high, the most powerful narcotic. It’s agony, it’s silly, it’s stupid, it’s irrational yet it is like a pillar of stability. It’s passion, obsession, it’s learning to let go. It’s maturity, it’s order and turmoil, it’s a contradiction in itself. It’s everything that you can experience. It’s a faith beyond God and religion itself. You may not agree with some, or any, of what I have written. I will not refute your claim. Nor be foolish enough to say, “You’ve never been in love, you will not understand”. Love can be best described as “To each one, their own”. It’s so personal a feeling that no one explanation could possibly relate to everyone. Yet in its own universality love is more fundamental to understanding human behaviour, in general, than any rule of science has or ever will be.
“Love looks not with the eyes, but with the mind;And therefore is winged Cupid painted blind.”- William Shakespeare
What about the regular clichés that we only fall in love once, that we know true love when we see it, etc. Like I said, I cannot possibly come up with an answer which will be true for everyone, or even the majority. These things come true for some people and not for others. Some people love forever and some for just hours. Yet, underlying all these varying and contradictory facts, is one truth that altruistic love does exist and lasts forever. For those, who like me, prefer simpler explanations it means selfless love. A form of love where you put the person you love above yourself and that becomes the guiding principle of your life even if it means sacrificing your love itself. It need not be reciprocated but it will last in you. I cannot console you if you’ve ever had to sacrifice your love for love’s happiness but take solace in the fact that he/she is in a better place and that’s all that really matters. Trust me, for I may not have lived long enough, but I’ve loved long enough.
All this serious and morbid stuff might put off all those people who have never experienced any of it, irrespective of whether they have ever been in love or not. I apologize; broken hearts are like broken vessels often pouring themselves out on paper at the slightest touch of love. Yet love is beautiful too. It is an energy that resonates with nature itself and connects you to life the way “God” meant it to be. And it’s not always so complicated nor does it require humongous deeds of sacrifice. Indeed the things I enjoyed about being in love were the little ones, the hesitant conversations, the “chup chup ke milna”, staring into the eyes, the accidental brushing of hands, finally coming out in the open etc. All the turmoil of emotions that reign chaos and drive your actions can be broken down to simple acts of caring for someone and wanting to be with them. For all its complexity, love is the most simple, primeval even, of all emotions.
And now one final aspect I must touch before I go in search for a healing touch for my sorrowful state. A lover’s lament! Often people do not realize how important their love is to them until it is too late. Many of you who’ve never experienced the sorrow of parting will never understand the emptiness inside. As St. Augustine said, it is much easier to have not been loved than to know love and lose it. The memories, both the good and the bad, are not enough to fill the void.
This editorial shall remain anonymous, for it is not written by one person. It is written by all those who’ve felt some or all of what been written here.
Cheers.
