Did you get my love letter?

[en_tout_cas]

I have been pondering over this question for a while now. I have always been a big fan of letters (real ones, on real paper delivered by real pigeons post); moreover, I believe I am a word-person. I'm too logical for hidden meanings and I tend to over-think stuff, so I believe in words - well, if you say something aloud, it's at least

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Languages of Love

[jlindsey]

I realize this entry is well over a year old now, but I just found it (I follow breadcrumbs), and I think it catches on a couple interesting subjects.

There are different ways that people can express or receive love. One way, as you have described, is through words. But there are other ways as well. Where one may feel most loved with a certain set of words, another may feel more loved with a simple touch/hug/cuddle/kiss. Or instead of those, perhaps it is the act of someone's lover doing something for them. Or perhaps it is simply spending time together. Even gifts, expensive or not, can be a more powerful expression of love to some.

These are commonly known as the Five Languages of Love. Gifts, quality time, words of affirmation, acts of service, and physical touch. Different individuals may feel more loved when the love is expressed in a certain language than others. And different individuals may be more likely to express their love using certain languages than others.

I don't think the use of words to express love has faded away, but the nature of it has certainly shifted. While the carefully crafted love letter might be more rare, these days it could be a short note left for you, saying how beautiful you are, or a message in the middle of the day saying that you mean so very much to them.

The interesting thing about the deep feeling you mentioned is that it seems the more the feeling is expressed, the deeper the feeling becomes. And as you get that feeling, creativity often clicks in and offers more ways to express that feeling. It can be a self-perpetuating process, but only so long as it is not ignored; so long as it is actually acted upon. If we get lazy and don't do anything to express the feeling of love, we start to lose that deep feeling. If we shy away from expressing our love, for whatever reason, the cycle is not perpetuated.

For some reason there are times that we get lazy and just don't get around to expressing our feeling. And there are times that we end up shy or uncomfortable with showing love. But the more we do it, the easier it gets. That is (just one reason) why it is important to practice love every day.