little things

Getting the following fwd from a fren triggered the idea of writing this post….
1st the fwd – here it goes:

A group of 4 to 8 year-old Children were asked, "What does love mean?"
The answers they gave were broader and deeper than anyone could have imagined.
--"Love is when you tell a guy you like his shirt, then he wears it everyday" (Tina - age 7)
--"When someone loves you, the way they say your name is different. You know that your name is safe in their mouth." (Billy - age 4)
--"When my grandmother got arthritis, she couldn't bend over and paint her toenails anymore. So my grandfather does it for her all the time, even when his hands got arthritis too. That's love." (Rebecca - age 8 )
--"Love is when you go out to eat and give somebody most of your French fries without making them give you any of theirs.." ( Chris sy - age 6 )
--"Love is what makes you smile when you're tired." (Terri - age 4 )
--"Love is when my mommy makes coffee for my daddy and she takes a sip before giving it to him, to make sure the taste is OK." (Danny - age 7)
--"Love is like a little old woman and a little old man who are still friends even after they know each other so well." (Tommy - age 6 )
--"During my piano recital, I was on a stage and scared. I looked at all the people watching me and saw my daddy waving and smiling. He was the only one doing that. I wasn't scared anymore. That's love" (Cindy -age 8)
--"Love is when your puppy licks your face even after you left him alone all day." (Mary Ann - age 4 )

Fwd ends here…it set me googling for some other quotes on love..here are a few of wat I found..

The greatest happiness of life it the conviction that we are loved -- loved for ourselves, or rather, loved in spite of ourselves." By: Victor Hugo

"We can do not great things - only small things with great love." By: Paul Tillich

Love is not blind - It sees more and not less, but because it sees more it is willing to see less – Will Moss

My understanding/opinions/take on ‘Love’:
1. First and foremost, there is only one truth i.e. there exists one and only one type of ‘love’ in the world – Pure, Selfless and Unconditional. Any dilution in any of these 3 criteria means that the love is not true…
2. Love is Spiritual.
3. Love stems for innate respect for the other person. You cant love someone you don’t/cant respect..
4. We DON’T ‘Fall in Love’ ……..we actually RISE in it..because of its purity and innocence. Hence, wat we have to ‘fall’ for is not ‘Love’!!!
5. There can be no Pain in ‘Love’ – Pain comes only wen u love with expectations of reciprocity, expectation of being loved in return, wen u place demands/restrictions….
6. Love never goes waste….even if the ppl you love don’t love you back….Loving truly helps u become a better person, helps u grow.

Finally…..
I just finished reading this beautiful book – ‘Astrid and Veronika’ (will devote an entire post to it, sometime soon!!!). Am putting forth an extract from this book - Astrid talking to Veronika on Love:
“Love comes to us with no forewarning, and once given to us, it can never be taken away. We must remember that. It can never be lost. Love is not measurable. It cannot be counted in years, minutes or seconds, kilos or grams. It cant be quantified in any way. Nor can it be compared, one with the other. It simply Is. The briefest brush with Love can sustain you for a lifetime…..Never forget that all the love in your life is there inside you, always.”