alf

in response, alf wrote a post on his blog with his views on april 30, 2006, here.
//

What is love, really?

Allow me to propose my thesis - there is something called love.

Let me explain: I define love as an unconditional act. When I "love" someone, I go out of my way to do something for that person without expectations. That means, without expecting a reward in terms of money, favours, sex, whatever.

Another condition to prove love is that whatever you do for the other person must be inconvenient for you. It's very easy if you buy something for someone with your spare change. You did not make any sacrifice. Anyone with the means to satisfy another person can claim it to be an act of "love".

Love is really a sacrifice. Love is when you give up something you have or want for somebody else's sake, even though you feel the pinch. It can be your television programme, your hobby, your lifestyle, your career, even your life.

You can love both men and women (let us not talk about animals or objects or ideas) - there are no boundaries to love.

In a world that has become systematically pragmatic, it is very difficult to find examples of love. Why should I do something for you when you don't do anything for me? Today, we think first of ourselves, then of others. This will have very dire consequences for society. Humans who do not look out for each other cannot weather crises.

There are many implications of not loving. Do you not consider the person behind you on the escalator, waiting to move while you hold hands with your partner? Do you not consider the driver waiting at the lights while you saunter across the road on a green man? Do you think that public transport may be better for the earth, or do you buy a car anyway for your own convenience?

Love is about the other at the expense of the self. It has nothing to do with romance, friendship, companionship, or barter. It is not about win-win situations. It is really about making the world a better place, a more human place - if that is what human means - to live in.

Of course we could say, "that's not how our businesses were built, that's not how our nation was founded." But of course, I am ever idealistic, and of course, there is always this thing called love.