What an over used word, right? It’s almost as if it lost it’s meaning – because it has. This generation knows how to love, we really do. We understand actions that mean love – we understand that we kiss our partners, we run our fingers through their hair to comfort them, we understand that we should listen to them, we understand that we should be there for them (whatever that entails). However, very few of us (especially novel lovers) understand the processes and WHY certain actions mean love.

We, as women, are taught at an early age that love is like the movies. We must say no walk away and the man is supposed to chase after us, twirl us around, hold on to us, and kiss us until we give in (because THAT’S what we really want when we say no). Movies have taught us that if he’s angry and yelling, he is more than likely just trying to get to know us (so we, and our partners, can’t differentiate between actual ‘get away from me’ anger and ‘I’m trying to get to understand you’ anger).

Love is communication. It’s as simple as that. It’s being able to openly receive messages and analyze those messages, and respond in a way that is healthy for you and the other being. Conceptually, love is an easy concept. In reality, it is an extremely difficult task to do. We are bombarded with messages that tell us that there is THE ONE out there for us, when in reality we have the potential to fall head over heels with absolutely every individual we come in contact with. Empathy, active listening, and suspension of judgment are the basal foundations of love and all of it’s elemental magic. We don’t have one soulmate, and we don’t have to block anyone and everyone until we find “the one” because we lose the ability to understand that everyone has the potential to bond with us.