Topic of the Day

Does Love EVER Die? And Do We Want it to Live Forever Anyway?

Ok, I'm not talking about love like we have for our children, our parents or our siblings. I'm talking about the love you share with the person you decide to spend your life with, your romantic partner. Of course the love of our dear families will live forever and we wouldn't want it any other way. Or at least I know I wouldn't. But I'm not sure I feel the same way about romantic love.

Most of us will love more than one person over the course of our lives, some of us will love many people. And these loves will cease for many different reasons that may or may not be in our control. People grow apart, get bored, change, find new people or die. The reasons just go on. I'm sure everyone has a different tale to tell about how love has ended in our lives.

But does love live forever? This kind of love? In our heart of hearts we yearn to say 'yes' love does last forever. But it doesn't. If we're completely honest with ourselves we know that it doesn't. It may last your whole life, and if so, you're a lucky person. But that is one love, there were others before that didn't last.

We love many, but last with very few. Often, when the relationship ends the love lingers, it's finger tugging and pulling at our aching hearts. At that time, it is living on, painfully live on, making us ache. But time mends or, in a sense, it kills love and we're able to move on. I do not believe that the love wasn't real to begin with, all love is real and we fall in love many times. But it is not a forever thing until, well... it is.

At last, we overcome our broken hearts and that love has died. But what about death? Does the love we have die when one of the bodies are gone? No, not really. But, in a sense, it does too. I know that makes no sense. But death pulls people apart and with no reason to hate we hold onto it, feeling cheated. You can't find a reason to stop loving, because there isn't one. Yet, most find that they are able to move on, to new love.

Does it mean that love died? Maybe it does, maybe it doesn't. The truth is that if it lives beyond death than what will happen when we all meet our maker and waiting for us is the first love whose life was taken and the new love whose spirit will join eventually? Which love will take precedence in death? If we love beyond the grave, we wait to be reunited. But if our left behind love has moved on, will they be ready for us when they come? Or will they be waiting for their new love?

That said, if love never dies, then in death love is even more complicated. I prefer to think that love may never die, it just moves on and lets go and once it's gone, it's never yours to claim or offer again. Think of the movie Ghost where she is told that he is taking their love with him. At that moment, she will never move on. How can she, knowing that he is beyond, loving her still? In a sense, to survive, love sometimes has to die.

Regardless of this complexity and my no doubt confusing post, I believe we should all fall in love as often as possible until the day comes when we're done.

Sissy