Love In The Air

It is February, which means love is in the air as Valentine’s Day nears. Everything is subsumed in romance. Stores stock up on chocolates, gifts and cards all wrapped with a shiny, red bow. Lovers plan an exchange of gifts. Restaurants offer coupons for a candlelight dinner for two. Young hearts scribble handwritten love notes for their object of affection. But amid the starry-eyed lovers are singles who remain unseen. 

Valentine’s Day might be welcomed with open arms by those in love but for the rest of the single people, it is the opposite. And yet one cannot escape the onslaught of Valentine-themed messages, which makes it clear that the world celebrates love, while remaining single is considered nearly an anathema. With every beating heart that sings with love, there are those with broken hearts. Even Taylor Swift confessed it in her song, “I can do it with a broken heart.” As such, it might be better to wait it out for true love rather than fall headfirst into a wrong and even anguishing love story.

To embrace singledom these days, Valentine’s Day has broadened to concepts of friendship, platonic love and even self-love. Not all love culminates in romance, as romantic love isn’t the only known love. A parent’s love is the most cherished one there is. Then there is love between siblings and families. Even friends share a unique bond that lasts, unlike every other relationship that fails. Mother Nature is love personified. Animals are known to show love and affection towards their mates and young ones. Poetry has long personified nature into a notion of awe-inspiring entity that not only gives life but sustains it. 

Only humans, the most rational of beings, have been known to be wicked. It is only humans who intend to harm one another. Sadly, turning on their own better nature, people don’t hesitate to inflict pain, often as a result of hurt and anger. As Valentine’s Day nears, the world remains in a shambles. Politicians continue to wage their own battle for power. Terrorists spread panic and fear. People are dying of starvation, famine and civil war. But conversations are shifting gradually. With hundreds who betray, hurt and exploit another, there are thousands with a noble, tender and generous heart. 

Even as the world is going to pieces, people continue to love and care for one another. Humanity does have hope even as wars are being raged over petty matters of politics, territory and identity. At its core, being human means to love, truly, deeply and profoundly. It is when humans move away from this ideology that problems surface in the form of hate, not only towards others but also towards themselves. As philosophers opine, love is the cure as well as the answer. True love transcends all differences. It magnifies the way we perceive the world as it provides trust, fidelity and safety. 

There is thus still a glimmer of optimism because despite the current state of affairs, there are those who continue to be affectionate to others. They show up with a bunch of your favourite flowers. They smile with joy when they see you. And they love you with all of their passionate heart. That alone is a reason for hope.