The Many Definitions of Love

The Many Definitions of Love
Michelle Kim

    Love has an infinite amount of definitions that cannot be measured by any physical means. One may never know what true love is until they have experienced it for themselves. Some people may love superficial or materialistic items such as money, power and fear. However, no one can truly know when they have found genuine love. Can you love someone or something without actually having had that person or thing with you your whole life? I have often fantasized that when I fall in love, it would be a precise moment where you just know it is  that person at first sight. Although, I can say my love stories are not like the movies, there are moments when love simply comes to you, whether it is  by getting to know someone over time or their physical attractions. 

    A childhood friend is the kind of love that develops over time as you spend time with that person. Growing up, I had a close childhood friend that was with me for as long as I could remember. We would always play together on the playgrounds and at each others’ houses. We both also had an obsession with stuffed animals. Every time we met up, we would bring at least one stuffed animal to play pretend with. We pretended these stuffed animals were our pets and we had a “farm” that was filled with different types of animals. However, the more time we spent together and got closer,  the more I realized that I had feelings for him. This was back in second grade where I considered him to be my first “love”. Eventually, as we grew up, we slowly started to drift apart and those feelings started to fade. However, we still keep in touch with each other as people we knew from our childhoods. 

As I became a teenager, I naturally started to develop a platonic love for people I believed I was attracted to. There are times where I think to myself, “Am I attracted to that person for who they are for or for their physical traits?” In that stage, that is when we start to develop celebrity crushes since they are mostly known for their physical appearances and traits. During this phase, I developed a huge celebrity crush on a Korean actor. I would watch every single drama, television show, or Youtube channel out there about him whenever I had the chance. I would even create my own fantasy dreams about him in my head when sleeping. Back then, I believed he was perfect and that he was the ideal man for me. 

Love can come in many different forms, from loving what is temporary or even permanent. Some love has its limits. Everyone has a time where they would fantasize about their love life. However, you will eventually snap back into reality realizing how it was only a fleeting moment of time. Love may fade in time and not all love is meant to last forever. It can be painful at times but there will come a time where love will last. In life, there will be many different experiences of love until you find the one that is for you.