latest

This is what love should really be about

By Murphy Obershaw, Copy Editor

Valentine’s Day is my favorite holiday.  I can’t help but fall for a day that is dedicated to love.

People like to celebrate this day by doing many different things including watching or reading love stories.

I have realized something important about some of the love stories out there though: They don’t always portray real love.

While these stories have some redeeming qualities that don’t make them absolutely terrible examples of love, there are still some things that have to be pointed out.

One of the biggest problems in love stories is the extreme focus on feelings.

Some love stories seem to imply that love is all about passions.  If someone does not have any romantic feelings towards their partner, there is something wrong, but having lovey-dovey feelings can’t be the end-all be-all of a relationship.

The reality of relationships is that you will not feel intense burning passion for your beloved until you die.

Besides feeling like you love them, you also have to act like you love them.

I’m not talking about buying them presents even though that is a sweet gesture and totally something I would do anyway.

I’m talking about caring for someone so much that you put your own needs and wants to the side to do what is best for them.

Though Disney movies have been criticized for not portraying love accurately, Olaf in “Frozen” seems to get it right when he says “Love is putting someone else’s needs before yours.”

When you really love someone, you realize it isn’t all about you.  Actually, it isn’t all about them either.  It is about both of you.

You don’t want to be trapped in a relationship where one person does all the giving, and the other person just takes because that isn’t love either.

Love is about both people working together and doing what is best for each other.  There is give and take on both sides of the relationship.

PHOTO: Courtesy Photo, istockphoto.com