What is Love?  Is it something like makes you break the law like when Ted steals that blue french horn for Robin? Is it something that pushes your endurance like when Ross races to three different airports to get Rachel off the plane? Or is it persistent like when Cory wouldn’t give up on Topanga just because her parents got divorced and she thought the same would happen to her?

We’ve seen throughout television a boy who meets a girl. Said boy falls in love with said girl.  Boy most likely screws something up because, well he is a boy. Boy learns his lesson and proves his love to Girl.  We all find a new appreciation for love.  The end.

Well, maybe not.

Don’t get me wrong. I love How I Met Your Mother, Friends, and Boy Meets World. But let’s face it – there is so much more to love than what is romanticized on movie and TV screens, on the pages of books, the lyrics to songs, or even the colors on canvas.  Love is more than just a vessel for romance.

Love is powerful yet peaceful. Love is healing yet heartbreaking.  Love is invigorating yet calm. Love is universal yet unique.  Love is simple yet complex.

Love is so much more than romance.

When I think of love I think of my family.  I think of my grandparents and watching their strength through family tragedy, but also through pride in times of blessings.  I think of the friends I have who have given me memories that can never be tarnished.  Whether it was crazy nights out or simple get-togethers, the fun I’ve shared with my friends has made all the difference in these relationships.  Even more so are the bonds we have formed through loss and grief and that possibly more so than the good, lighthearted times has proven to me the love that exists in friendship.  I even think of the love I’ve experienced when working with complete strangers. Whether it was a day of volunteering, or meeting people with a heartbreaking story, I see the love that bonds us all as humans, despite the differences that we depend on to divide us.  There is one thing that keeps us all the same and that is love.

Besides the relational aspect of love, I tend to find love in my own self, what I am passionate about and the crazy adventures I try to experience.  Sometimes it isn’t so easy to love yourself, especially when you fall off track from who and where you want to be.  But for me, I really do love myself, which is where I think love starts.  You can’t be a vessel for love if you don’t first love yourself.  I love my humor and my quirks. I love my smarts and my work ethic.  I love my leadership and how I communicate with people.  I think I’m weird and different, but I’m relatable and can empathize with anyone out there.

This helps me realize what I love to do.  Whether I’m journaling or blogging, writing a chapter for a book or a scene in a script – writing is what fuels me.  Anytime I’m able to put pen to paper or punch away at my keyboard, I feel like I am at my best.  So it is what I try to incorporate into my career in order to build myself to who I really want to be.  But even when I’m not writing or working, I love to take a roadtrip and explore new places and meet new people.  I’m naturally curious and love to see what this crazy world has to offer and what is in store for the future.

So for me, love is a beautiful thing.  It may bring us to places that test us, but it is love that allows us to persevere.  It may break our hearts, but it is love that will heal us better than we were before.  It may have us question everything in our lives only to allow each of us to live our truth and the answers we are searching for.

So yes, love is romantic.  I’ve been witness to many love stories – the best by far are off screen. But I have found love to be so much more than just romance.  Love is what makes you appreciate your family, build the best friendships you can ask for, feel confident in who you are, fulfilled by what you’re passionate about and be willing to explore the world with a curious, open and empathetic mind.

“Nothing is more practical than finding God, than falling in Love in a quite absolute, final way. What you are in love with, what seizes your imagination, will affect everything. It will decide what will get you out of bed in the morning, what you do with your evenings, how you spend your weekends, what you read, whom you know, what breaks your heart, and what amazes you with joy and gratitude. Fall in Love, stay in love, and it will decide everything.”