Unconditional Love...

Well, it's Valentine's Day weekend and you know what that means...let's spend some money! Flowers...candy...a night out at your favorite eating establishment...and don't forget the bling! After all, what says 'I Love You' better than some fancy, shiny, expensive bauble...right?

It's not uncommon at this time of year that our thoughts turn to the subject of love. The retail world has created a whole industry devoted to providing a mutitude of ways to show just how much you care. Cards, candy, flowers, and jewelry are just a few of the ways you can spend your money to prove your love.

For a few moments this year, I ask that you consider another type of love. The ancient Greeks had a great way of defining love. They used three words to express different kinds of love. Philia is a word that usually meant 'friendship' or a general type of love, like between friends or family, or when talking about something you enjoy doing. Eros is used to identify erotic, passionate love as between two individuals who strongly desire one another. Then there is Agapē love, which is unconditional love, or love for another, not because of what they can do or return, but simply because they are.

Since it is Friday, and Valentine's day weekend, allow me to share with you a poem I wrote a couple years ago for my wife. It is a poem of unconditional love.

The Rose and the Leaf

If my love were a rose, and I were a leaf…
separate and distinct, yet connected by necessity.

I would bask in the glory of her beauty,
content to reside in her shadow.

Daily providing strength and encouragement;
collecting sunshine to brighten her day,
and savoring the morning dew as her kiss.

Growing together in love that only time can provide,
until the ravages of time take their toll.

Til that day when age and Mother Nature take their course,
and together we whither and fall,
to take our place amongst those who have gone before.

Only to change and become one once again,
mixed and mingled with the soil of new life,
together always and forever…

If my love were a rose, and I were a leaf…

Enjoy your weekend. Take the time to examine your heart. Tell someone you love them this weekend. :-)