Lao Tzu said it best, "To love someone deeply gives you strength. Being loved by someone deeply gives you courage." It's amazing what you can accomplish with love on your side. True love is perhaps the strongest emotion known to man and also the best motivator and inspiration. When we are truly, deeply loved I believe that we can find the strength and courage to pursue our dreams. It took me 26 years to learn that there is truth to that statement. .
I think as human beings we associate romantic love with a feeling of euphoria, flowers, and walking on air. I was guilty of that. I kept waiting for that feeling to return. What I didn't know was that love was creeping up on me, and when it hit, it was nothing like I had expected it to be. Instead of feeling like I was floating above the clouds, I felt complete. All my fears were pushed aside and replaced with serenity. I also found that this newfound emotion made me want to be a better person and pursue my dreams. This man's love for me allowed me the freedom I needed and in return my love for him allowed him to pursue some lifelong goals for himself. Individually and together we have changed the courses of our lives, based on the power of this one small four-letter word.
In August of two thousand and two, I moved in with a man named Allen, whom I thought I was madly in love with. Couldn't imagine feeling more than I already did. The euphoric feelings were there, I felt as if no one could reach me because I was so high above the clouds. Our life together was "normal." We had some really good times and some of those pretty rough moments that everyone goes through. Something was missing though. I believe that I now know what it was; real love. It was not until May of this year that I began to experience an emotion I have never known before. Allen came to me and told me that I deserved more than I was. I had too much potential to just do nothing.
