The Amazement of the Gods

I am here to love and be loved -- to use my love to change and be changed. I did not come here to get wrapped up in a Disney fantasy or spend my life hunting my Romeo.
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What is love?

What does true, authentic love look like to you?

Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia, has a description of love, and to the right of that description is a painting of Romeo and Juliet.

Archetypal lovers Romeo and Juliet portrayed by Frank Dicksee

A twisted mix of obsession, lust and tragedy. Is that was love is supposed to look like?

This has me thinking about love and how it relates to me and my children. I went back and read the thoughts of some of my favorite Greek philosophers. Their thoughts on love resonate with me.

Socrates believed that true love was our access to the divine.

Plato spoke of love being the wonder of the Gods.

That doesn't match up with what's being told of love and just like with anything else in my life, this thought has forced me to ask myself this question: What is love and what do I want to use it for?

I believe that true, authentic love inspires mind and soul and directs our attention to our divinity.

Love should NOT be our distraction, but our inspiration.

The image of love has been distorted over the ages and raked over in the most epic ways by romance novels, movies, media stories, Hollywood, plays, Disney, etc. -- all created and delivered to us with the intention of stirring human emotion, not to tell the true story of love, but to sell their story.

My children are being brought up in the age of Taylor Swift love songs. That should say it all. I can't shield them completely and I wouldn't want to even if I could. But we can talk openly about the messages we are getting from media, romance novels, etc. Hopefully this open dialog will discourage them from buying into the popular notion that it's acceptable to spend their precious youth searching for a Romeo and Juliet kind of love and their old age trying to hold onto it. I want to help them connect with what they are capable of. Are they capable of great romance? Of course. Passion? Hell yes (they are my children after all). But I want them to really grasp how incredibly powerful their love is and all the different ways it can be used.

Love is our power. Love is what will change the course of the future and what will bring real and lasting peace. Love can inspire and drive us forward. Love gives us courage. Love is our magic and it should be used and given wisely.

Love has many impostors who have been portrayed brilliantly and convincingly throughout history.

I am here to love, not just one man or woman, but to love all that exists -- to be a vessel of authentic love in its purest form.

I am here to love and be loved -- to use my love to change and be changed. I did not come here to get wrapped up in a Disney fantasy or spend my life hunting my Romeo.

I want to retell the story of authentic love.

A love full of beauty, purity, magic and courage.

I want to make and create love that can once again be the amazement of the Gods.

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