We've all heard one million times that our generation is afraid of love and committment and these fears are the direct reason for our inability to say, "I love you." As that may be true, why do we feel those three little words are so much more detrimental than they really are? Why do we feel that we need to save those words for special moments so that they are not overused? We glide through life neglecting to tell friends and family that we love them because we assume that they already know.
Since I was young I've always had trouble telling people, especially my family and close friends, that I love them. With those words came a sense of embarrassment and my normally loud voice would grow extremely timid when trying to express any strong emotion. I almost felt that giving my love away like that made me too vulnerable therefore I rarely said it.
As I grew older and went through high school, my classmates starting telling one another that they love each other which was a huge deal. Suddenly love was considered taboo and if you told someone you loved them, it was practically official that you were getting married. Love was viewed as something sacred and of short supply which only added more to my fear of "wasting" love and telling the wrong people I loved them so I remained silent.
I finally came to a realization that the concept of saving love is overrated and an idea created by society. We have been trained to suppress our love, which has helped create our generation's pathetic dating culture. Let me tell you this--you can never love too much. Love is the one thing that we humans are able to give others without taking anything away from ourselves.
I believe that it's possible to love hundreds of people throughout a lifetime, and that each person is loved differently. I'm able to love my mom, my favorite teacher, my boss, my exes, my middle school best friends, my current best friends, and a random cute boy walking down the street all at the same time (obviously at different levels of intimacy...). I now strive to find something that I love in everyone because each person I come across has something completely unique to offer and I am able to learn from virtually everyone.
What I'm saying is that it's OK to love many people and to let them know before it's too late. Love is our superpower and a few kind words can work wonders to make difference in our ever-growing selfish culture.
