What Would You Do For Love?
I got asked this question recently, and I couldn’t find answers on the spot for some reason. In that moment, my mind drifted back to the things I’d already done for love — some of which, I can’t believe I did till this day — but in the present and continuous tenses, what would I do for love?
Is there a right or wrong answer to that? Is there a right or wrong response to loving and being loved? I got my answers in the bathroom (don’t judge me), but I’d like to share them with you. So, here goes…
Disclaimer: This entire work is my opinion and my outlook on things. It is in no way meant to point fingers at anyone either reading or not reading this post.
Love is Patient, Love is Kind
People tend to underestimate the importance of patience and kindness to those they love. It’s why there are a lot of toxic relationships (Romantic and otherwise) in the world today.
The thing is, patience and kindness go way beyond sitting pretty and waiting for your love to grow. Patience is more than just waiting for the other party to want to love you more. It’s more than waiting for them to want to know more about you; more than waiting for your relationship to stop being toxic.
Patience, to me, means waiting and working. In love, it means giving your partner the benefit of the doubt when they hurt you, enough to communicate your feelings and be heard.
Patience means forgiveness and compassion; you can sit and listen to them rant on about a subject without making it about yourself. Patience is learning how they want to be loved and giving yourself time to learn without giving up on the relationship.
Patience is an act of kindness.
That's why they go together. In one heartbeat, kindness and patience say, “You might not be perfect, but I love you enough to love you.” And that brings us to my first point:
For love, I would be kind and patient.
Love does not dishonour others: It is not selfish
Perhaps one of the most important things in relationships (at least to me) is that being in love does not mean accepting disrespect. Dare I say, if there’s disrespect or dishonour in a relationship, then the love probably needs some work.
Hear me out. Honour doesn’t mean bowing down to your partner on sight, or banging your head against the floor out of respect. Honestly, it’s in the tiny things.
I might be mad at you, but refuse to raise my voice or my hand at you. rather, I’d try to communicate with you, and if I can’t, I’m walking away from the scene.
Honour says, “We might be apart from each other, I might be drunk, but I respect our relationship and would not cheat on you.” and if I do, I’d tell you about it. I’d consider your feelings in all situations, especially those that concern our relationship (this is where not being selfish comes in).
For love, I will give honour to my partner.: I won’t be selfish
Love does not envy; It doesn’t boast
Think about it: You have a friend. Whenever you get a new win, you notice that they drift from you. And when you’re counting your losses, they seem ecstatic.
You might need to check the love in that friendship.
Love doesn’t try to put others down. Quite the opposite, actually. I know if I love someone, I want to see them happy and thriving all the time. And in times they’re not, I’m going to try to bring that smile back to their face.
So, you might be doing better than I am, you might be earning more, thriving more, but:
For love, I won’t envy or boast in your downfall.
Love is a beautiful thing, in all its forms. And while some people would do crazy things for love, it doesn’t take the importance out of the little things. And, of course, love would know if it’s unrequited. In essence, while it’s important that we show love and live in love, it’s also important that we receive love, too: real love. Not the — nonexistent — one we chase after out of desperation.
And when we do find it, the least we can do is cherish and keep it.
Toodles!
If you liked this story, be sure to give it a clap or two; it’d be much appreciated. And thank you so much for reading! I hope this inspired you as much as it did me, even as I wrote it.
