What Would You Do for True Love?

This post is in response to Robert Hruzek’s “What I learned from Love” group writing project.  You should join too. He does a new topic every month. It is a great way to make new friends, and drive a lot of traffic to your site. You are too late to participate this month (bwahaha), but subscribe to his blog so you won’t miss the project for next month. You will thoroughly enjoy reading his posts while you are waiting for a new month to start. He is one of the best universal interest (read: not tech, politics, or news) bloggers on the net.

Love is the irrational part of us that makes us do things that anyone in their right mind would never do. It tricks men into buying flowers, meals, cards, and all kinds of ridiculous stuff. It tricks women into making promises they will never keep – promises like “love, honor, and obey until death do you part”.  You gotta be crazy to do stuff like that….

(sound of a needle ripping across a vinyl disk)

That’s not love! That’s what we call “in love” – a state of being that sometimes turns into love, but “in love” is not the same thing as real, true love. “In love” is great, I have been in the silly state of “in love” 10+ years now, but “in love” won’t last that long without real love.

True love empowers kind actions toward other people regardless of looks, smell, ability to repay, or kindness toward you. It is more than a feeling. It is a long-term commitment. True love enables you to see value in people who are working directly against you, and genuinely hope the best for them.

True love inspires some over-the-top heroics too. For the love a friend, I have given hundreds of hours of time worth thousands of dollars. I have agreed to do things that I would never have done otherwise. I have overcome fears, and done things I did not think were possible. Fear is a great motivator, but love is stronger than those fears.

A husband and wife can share this kind of love (but unfortunately, it is rare). Best friends can share this kind of love. Even strangers can share true love, often formed in the midst of a crises. You might even have this type of love for your boss! I do.

The Chairman of the Caring for China Center, Mr Xu Wenli, spent 16 years in prison for the love of his nation, his people. He has committed the rest of his life to bringing freedom to the people of China. At first, I was excited to meet him because I had great respect for his message, but that quickly changed into a love for the man and for his mission. This love for and loyalty to Mr. Xu has not been convenient at times, and I really do wonder if we have bit off more than we can chew, but I will follow him right off a cliff if he thinks that is the best thing to do. That’s no idle threat, either. I wouldn’t put it past him.

True love has nothing to do with physical attraction. Books and television try to convince the gullible that they will only be happy when they find their one true love, the person they can live with for the rest of their lives (or at least a full night). Many people think that true love is an awesome experience with an awesome person, but that experience will soon be forgotten and it is going to take something bigger than that to get you through the next fight. True love is a commitment to stick no matter what.

One of the greatest examples of love in our time is Samwise Gamgee. Remember the hobbit that remained loyal, saving his friend’s life and helping him complete his mission despite being  mistreated, hated, mistrusted, starved, nearly killed, and even ordered to return. Sam is one of my role-models. A loyalty that would not let go. That is love.

Have you ever experienced True Love? What would you do for True Love?

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1. What I learned from Community
2. What I learned from a friend – I am arrogant.
3. Life is not (a) fair. It is a circus.
4. Two new plug-ins
5. What does it take to get you out of the bed in the morning?