On love

In response to a friend's question, "What's the best thing you can do for someone you love," I came up with these thoughts.

"Most of us realize loving someone is not about possessing that person, or finding them irresistibly attractive, or desperately wanting them in your life, or needing them in some other way. To love someone, your friend, your lover, your child, anyone, is to perceive the person as valuable beyond price. As an attitude, you simply want the best for the person who is the object of your love and you respect their choices of what's best, whether or not that lines up with what you would want for yourself or what you think the person should do. In practice, your actions reflect and affirm your love, encouraging the person to bring out their best and to strive for what they believe is best; and, you always hope this brings them the good life they deserve."

"I see it as an ideal we can strive for. No one, certainly not me, can do it "perfectly" but we can be mindful and do our best, if one believes in the ideal."