We all need to be loved. That’s a good thing. But what is love? Love has many forms and voices. We try to explain love by categorizing it, by dividing it into different parts, and by saying only certain types of love are allowed. But love is bigger than any one definition or experience. Love is the most powerful of all positive emotions. As such, love cannot be confined or held to one space or moment in time. Love is all-encompassing, present all the time, and without boundaries.

What is love?

It’s difficult to define love. Mostly because there are so many different types of love. While we all experience love, love isn’t limited to one type of experience or relationship. Love can be as equally strong and fulfilling between two men as it is between a man and a woman. First love, often trivialized as “puppy love”, can be as emotionally complicated and rewarding as the love shared by longtime couples.

Love is the strongest of positive emotions. Love is a type of affection people need from each other. Love drives people to connect with each other. Self love can be the toughest to master, because without good self-love, a person cannot truly love others. Love drives us forward to the next higher level of being, the next level of self-esteem, the next level of goodness in the world.

Healthy love is a joy to experience. Love isn’t limited to a certain time. Nor is love a limited to a species, a planet, or a moment in space. Love exists as an eternal loop of positivity that flows freely throughout the universe. Anyone, anything, can access love.

Why do we need to be loved?

There is no person alive who hasn’t experienced the need to be loved. From the moment you are born, you have a need to be loved. Studies prove that hugs are the simplest way to give love. We know that babies who aren’t hugged grow up emotionally detached and cold. The need to connect with someone is also a reason why toddlers always want to touch people.

But love also drives you forward in your personal evolution of being. Once your feelings of safety and basic needs are met, there’s still a desire, a hunger, for something more. That something more is your next higher level of being. Love drives this search forward. Love makes you seek out other people to form relationships with. Love paints the world with positive colours, and makes you want to do good things for others. Self love encourages you to try new things, and to see the good that is within yourself.

Love gives hope.

Love is one of the strongest, if not the strongest, force in the universe. Love gives hope. Love gives something to believe in and seek out. Love brings the feeling and idea that life is worth living and is beautiful to experience. Even if you are in the darkest of places emotionally, love still exists in the world for you. You may not feel loved, or believe you are loved, but that emotion is there, ready and free for your use. Take that love and make it yours.

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