Love is like friendship, but the emotions are far more
intense than those we feel for friends. Believing that your partner is
extremely important to you, caring and feeling warmth, affection and desire for
him or her are all part of loving someone.
Love means taking risks. There is always a danger of being
rejected when we grow closer to another person and share our deepest feelings,
making ourselves vulnerable. When we need to move forward in our relationships,
it might be necessary to try new things or to do things differently. For most
of us, this can quite be scary. Although risks do not always work out, they are
well worth taking if our relationships are to grow and thrive.
We must encourage our partners to share their feelings and
thoughts with us. Love means learning to accept the differences between each
other, and respecting each other’s ideas, feelings, and attitudes. There will
be times when couples will disagree – this is normal. You will not always
admire and approve of what your partner does or say, and you may not always
understand him or her.
Love means to allow each other to grow as individuals. You will
not always be able to or want to do everything together and should keep some separate
interests. Some couples seem to merge into one another, but at risk of losing
their individual identities.
Too many are too keen to give in to their partners, just to
keep their love! However, unhappiness results when one partner gives too much
and is always the one making sacrifices. It is essential to keep a balance
between giving and receiving.
Our ability to love and be loved depends on our sense of
self-worth and self-esteem. We can only truly love someone else if we love,
respect and accept ourselves. If we can strengthen ourselves, we are able to strengthen
our relationship with someone.
