How Society Defines Love
A young woman comes home one day, beaming with excitement. She sits down at the dinner table and tells her parents, “Oh, Momma! Daddy! You won’t believe the guy I’ve met. He’s handsome, kind, sweet, and smart. We get along so well. I find myself talking to him for hours. I’m so in love!” Her parents share a cautious glance before her father asks, “What does he do for a living?”
“Well, he’s a representative at Hertz Rent-A-Car,” the girl reluctantly responds. The father sucks in his breath and shakes his head in disapproval.
Across town, a young man returns home after a long day at work, walks in the kitchen and tells his parents, “Mom and Dad, I’ve met a girl. She’s smart, fun, and exciting. I can’t wait for you to meet her. I’m so in love!” The parents share a proud smile before his father leans in with a mischievous grin and asks, “Well, what does she look like?”
Notice the question the father asks in each story. When the girl is the main character, the father is concerned with how she’ll be provided for. However, the boy’s father is only interested in the girl’s physical appearance. Both stories demonstrate the stipulations society places on relationships. While these stipulations may address our most basic needs, they often distract or prevent us from fulfilling the third level of the pyramid and moving higher. These limiting conditions should not exist in your search for love. Real love doesn’t flourish because someone has enough money or the right looks. These attributes of a person may be enticing in the beginning, but I guarantee, if it’s the foundation of your relationship, the relationship will sink.
As Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs demonstrates, love exists on a different level than survival needs. It is something beyond food, clothing, shelter, and physical allure. The spirit of love is an energy, a force, an intuitive knowingness; it’s your inner voice.
Love is the vital spirit that enables the human soul to thrive. Without it, the soul is empty. Fortunately, love can be found in many places beyond just romance. We share it with our children, parents, friends, and mentors, each variety being equally important. Love is filled with affection, admiration, respect, and remains at the foundation of happiness. It doesn’t require exhaustive entertainment but instead is satisfied with simply coexisting in each other’s presence. You can’t hear it, see it, touch it, taste it, smell it, or collect it in a box, but love makes you whole. It’s the essence of who we are as spiritual beings.