Sonnets and songs have been written about love. Paintings and graphics attempt to portray it. But the truth is, our best efforts are less, much less than the whole of what we feel. Nothing encompasses all the emotions that comprise that most elusive of feelings--love.
One of the problems is we've devalued of the word love. We 'love' our new shoes. We 'love' our new car. We 'love' movies, television shows, celebrities, our haircut, books, chocolate, a comfortable bed, and hot coffee in the morning. Small wonder then that we have nothing left to express how we feel when we hold our child, when we embrace our parents or when we touch our mate.
As writers we struggle to convey the overwhelming feelings our characters develop, frequently falling back on the physical when all else fails. Sex is not love, though it can be an aspect between lovers. How to describe our hero's love?
Often we demonstrate it by allowing the hero to rescue the heroine which may leave the reader feeling shortchanged. Riding to the rescue is not love, either.
Each time I speak to my children and grandchildren on the phone I say, "I love you." Every single time it seems insufficient and lacking. Is that because it's via electronic media? I don't know. Somehow without the human touch, it feels like less.
When I speak to my parents across the wide distance that separates us, I say, "I love you." Can they feel how I wish I was close enough to hold them?
"I love you."
anny
Yes. I always tell my children, my parents, my friends I love you. I think it's important to say the words.
ReplyDeleteYep, I think it's important. But sometimes it seems they aren't enough.
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