Love

It could be argued that love is the most abused and confusing word in the English Language, yet it is a word/concept that is longed for above anything other concepts. Although the dictionary’s definition tells us that love is “an intense feeling of deep affection.” The great longing in every human soul to be loved surely can’t simply be defined so simply. I love my children, I might ‘love’ your photo on Facebook, and I also love ice cream How can our longing for a concept(love) be the same as our appreciation for a food or a little heart on a computer screen. The Greeks had four separate words for the multiple layers of love, and I would suggest that the Greek language had a better grasp on the intensity of the word.  Yet if I go back to the dictionary definition and understand that there are many levels to the concept, perhaps this is a genius definition. To love is to be human. To have intense affection with multiple layers shows us the complexity of the human mind and emotion. Towards my children, the depth of my affection is far greater than towards frozen confections. Despite my personal desire for better clarification of love, so that the abuse of the word can be eliminated, I can also acknowledge that the word/concept of love associated with simple definition perhaps is the best definition we can use.