The Observations of a Madman #1

         Well, seeing as this is The Observations of a Madman #1 I guess that I should first tell you a little about what this is going to be like. I'm going to voice my knowledge, observations and opinions on certain issues, ideas and other such things. I'll probably ask more questions and give less answers, but that's why it's a The Observations of a Madman, and not a The Observations of a Genius etc. However, I'm getting distracted... Before I start, I'd like to say that I don't want to start any arguments, these are, after all, just my opinions. Well, I thought I'd start with a topic you all know: Love.

         I know that in the 60s / 70s that people overused the word's "love", "peace" and so many other Hippie phrases - I have nothing against Hippies, by the way...Now, if I may ask a question: "What do you associate with the word 'Love'?" A spouse, child or parent? Something you like doing? The colour (color) pink? Flowers? Women? Interestingly, the Japanese/Chinese character (Kanji) for "Tenderness" contains the Kanji (Japanese/Chinese character) for 'woman' and 'child': to convey the love and tenderness that a mother has over her child... But, again, I digress. Whatever you associate 'Love' with, we've all experienced it at some point: be it the love of a parent, imaginary friend, or boyfriend / girlfriend. So to get down to it, what is it? Is it simply impulses from the brain, or is it something deeper? Well, whatever it is, my first observation is that everyone has a deep-seated need to be loved by someone, or something. And how do I know this, if you visit your mother and say something along the lines of: "Mum (Mom), I hope you know that I love you", you can watch her face light up - go and try it. Or, if you have children, how does it feel when they say "I love you, mummy (mommy) / daddy"? Feels good, eh?

         Here's something for you, I - being 'scholar' of languages, if you'll permit me the phrase - will tell you from two good examples, Japanese and Greek, what their words for 'love', and their secondary meanings are:

Japanese - 愛 - Love, affection, harmony [ai]
Greek - αγάπη - selfless love, unconditional love [agape]

         My Second Observation would be this: if you take all these words into account, Love isn't simply "a tender affection for another person", but it involves putting the one you love in front of yourself, loving them not matter what they put you through, remember the Kanji (from above) of Chinese/Japanese characters - well 愛 is made up of the Kanji for 'heart' and 'to receive' - therefore to love you must give your whole heart to the one you love, and also working in harmony (working together) with the one that you love - "Love is a team game". So, from a linguistics point of view, the word 'love', not only has its original meaning, but many subtle nuances and connotations.
         My third Observation is that the three most powerful words: "I love you". I'm listening to a song, by DC Talk, and the lyrics say:

Say the words, Say the words, Say "I love you"
         Say the words, I long to hear

         If someone were to say "I love you", and truly meant it, would you not feel uplifted? Encouraged? Also, on this note, there's a book (I can't remember the author), The 5 Languages of Love, which talks about how different people feel love, I'm not going to give you the details, you'll need to buy the book for them. Nor am I going to give you love-secrets, but, I will urge couples to find out how their partners feel love: be it through loving deeds, loving words, buying gifts etc, because once you find that out, you can truly love them... Alternatively, you could buy the book. Another question for you: why does love effect people differently? And by extension, is love based on the individual? I'll let you ponder that...

         Love - and yes it may be "corny", "cheesy" etc - but the concept is adopted by all of the major world religions, even if you believe them or not. That points, at least to me, that love is an important concept in Human Life. Is that what differs us from animals? I've also noticed that people tend to avoid the magical "I love you". Why? Do we all develop an aversion to it after, say, ten years? I'm not pointing the figure at you all, because I'm aware that I don't say is as often as I probably should... But, back to the point in hand, I'm sure that most, but not all, divorcees still love their ex-partners, but they either refuse to show it, or tell them, this may have led their partner to think that they were in an unrequited love situation. The old excuse is "They know that I love them, why should I have to tell them?", but this brings me back to the above paragraph. Not only does it encourage your partner/spouse, but it also affirms that you still feel love.

         Well, as I draw this Essay to an inevitable close, let me just quickly recap what I've Observed:

1) Everyone has a deep-seated longing to be loved
2) Love isn't just the dictionary definition: "a tender affection for another person"
3) The most powerful words: I LOVE YOU
4) You all have a 'Love-language', find out what it is...

         And as I, eventually, end this Essay, I'll leave you all with a request, or challenge if you want: Try and say "I love you" at least once this week, I'll certainly be attempting this audacious quest, so I'll leave you with a very fond farewell, and until next time...