Young At Heart

Vincent Van Gogh once said, ~Love is eternal - the aspect may change, but not the essence. There is the same difference in a person before and after he is in love as there is an unlighted lamp and one that is burning. The lamp was there and was a good lamp, but now it is shedding light too, and that is its real function. And love makes one calmer about many things and way, one is more fit for one's work.~ In some aspect, love is considered to be immortal as it has been able to survive throughout the ages in a metaphorical lamp known as the human heart. Encased within one's so-called lamp is a seemingly ageless love that even though it tends to flicker at times, the essence of it continues to be felt, which shows how love never really dies out in your heart.

Let me ask you this question, what do you think the essence of love embodies that it has been able to survive over the years? In my own thinking, there is a certain amount of untainted, pure innocence and honesty to where it gives off an illuminating glow, which can give you that sometimes warm, fuzzy feeling not only in your heart, but also in your soul as well. Unfortunately, its that same untainted, pure innocence and honesty, which can become tainted by experiencing the pangs of painful heartbreak and deceit that can have the illuminating glow fade into something that is seen as dark, as well as, dreary to the point where you gradually lose that warm, fuzzy feeling one gets when you meet someone who makes your internal lamp simply light up.

When it comes to the fuel that keeps the essence of love within the lamp of your heart consistently shining no matter how many times one thinks its going to run out is caring thoughtfulness. If you think about it, its a priceless fuel source that absolutely never runs out as it comes from a person and/or a group of people who truly and genuinely love/care about you. Its these particular people who, in a manner of speaking, the fuel source that helps shed light on aspects of life and love that are oftentimes covered in darkness. Without a doubt, its comforting to know you have friends, family, and hopefully that certain someone special who you trust to help you light your way in the direction when you find yourself lost in the darkness of your very own feelings and emotions.

Essentially, the glue that holds it all together is the one thing that can most definitely burn you if its not taken seriously and that is trust. For centuries it's been the cornerstone of any relationship and yet it has been broken because of it being taken advantage of to where he or she inevitably steals that essence away from you leaving you with a cold empty feeling inside your heart. It's a sad situation indeed to experience, but when you do finally meet someone who can bring it back you can slowly put your trust in him or her to where you both can comfortably wrap/embrace it around each other without any doubts and/or fears in your mind like a warm blanket. For the question can be asked, do you share a blanket of trust, so to speak, with someone special who lights up your heart?

In retrospect, love or true love for that matter has been able to stand the test of time without aging one bit as if it took the fabled elixir Ponce De Leon searched for known as the fountain of youth. In any case, there are countless stories over the past two thousand years where the essence of love remains burning within not just our hearts, but also our minds as well. Such stories of love that truly stay with us are William Shakespeare's Romeo and Juliet, Humphrey Bogart and Audrey Hepburn from the classic movie Casablanca, God sacrificing himself for all mankind, etc. In the end, no matter how much we change as we grow older, love never changes as it continues to brighten, as well as, warms the hearts of both ourselves and those around us, who will always be young at heart.