What is Love?

“What is love?” asked the boy, bright eyes studying the elderly woman.

She paused her work and turned to face him. She sat and patted the seat next to her.

“Sit here and I’ll tell you,” was the brief response.

The boy eased himself onto the bench and looked at her intently.

“What is love? Love has multiple forms.

“There is family love and romantic love.

“Family love comes with small things. A whispered blessing, a warm hug, an extra five minutes to sleep in when they know you’re tired. The feeling of waking up on the couch and being covered by grandma’s quilt, or smelling bacon cooking on a weekend morning. It’s the knowledge that no matter what happens, your family will be there.

“Romantic love arrives slowly and then all at once. It’s the whispered compliments, the joyful laughter in the middle of the night, the fear of losing them. This love is precious, as is family, but this is more precious, because you have to search for it. This love accompanies the tingling feeling in your stomach when they get too close, or the sinking feeling when they slam the door and send you away. It’s the knowledge that you want to spend the rest of your life with them and wake up with them sleeping there beside you.” The old woman’s eyes turned dreamy.

“Did you ever love someone like that?” asked the boy.

“Yes, I did. They’re gone now, but my peace comes from knowing that I’ll see them again one day. I smile, and they’ll grin, and we’ll run and embrace each other. Then, we’ll know that we won’t ever have to part again. That’s the best part of love: knowing that no matter what, in this world or the next, you’ll always find a way to be together.”