I know all you marrieds out there probably say this all the time."I love my husband!"
This is not a new concept. It is not strange. It is not unusual to profess this - maybe even shout it from rooftops or mountain tops.
"I LOVE MY HUSBAND!"
It is even common to express it as a measure of gratitude or excitement.
"I love my husband!"
But I want to express it from the bottom of the deepest depths of my soul.
"I......love......my......husband."
No exclamations, not as a gesture to thank him for taking out the trash or mowing the lawn, not even as that routine statement that those words can become after years and years of marriage - simply as an expression from the innermost part of me.
Isn't that the place that love should come from? Shouldn't it be from that place so deep inside that the line between self and the other person is blurred?
Now, I'll be the first to admit, I like how love makes me feel. But,I believe that love is not only about how I feel. It is not primarily about me or my needs being met. It is not the material things that my husband can give me. It is not about the security that comes from always having another to bear the load of life. Nor is it about reaching goals and milestones together.
What I believe it is about is loving another selflessly. It is about supporting the other person to truly know who they are as an individual. It is about giving the other person encouragement and room to grow and become whole. It is about helping to bring their dreams and aspirations to a place of reality. It is about compassion, forgiveness, compromise and understanding. It is about loving them so fully that you don't remember where the line is that separates you from them.
I believe that love is about everything that my husband has shown me.
What is love to you?
Love is all of that, but it is also a commitment. A commitment to work things through, to stay when you are ticked off, to know you are loved even when your partner just doesn't get what you are saying or feeling. It is all of these things. The strength of the commitment is what gets us to the deep, selfless love that encourages and stays.
ReplyDeleteGreat post. In addition to all those wonderful definitions of love, love often means shedding a part of yourself, and doing so willingly because you know it makes you a better person.
ReplyDeleteExcellent post. You have the right recipe for a blissful and long-enduring marriage. Way to go to both of you. Often times we hear only of reports about the sad state of matrimony in our country and seldom hear the good parts of it. So, to hear and read good stories about it directly from people, is very encouraging.
ReplyDeleteTasha