Love as defined by Hollywood and regurgitated by me

Originally posted on Oct. 17, 2005:

A good friend of mine asked me a while back kind of an odd question: if love can be defined by something you can feel, touch, taste, smell, etc, what would it be?

Well, the following is my reply. I wish I could say that it's all original but, despite my best efforts, I'm sure most of what follows is right out of some book I've read or some movie I've seen.

So, here goes...

"If love (for now, I mean love for that significant other person in your life, not love for say... dark chocolate with 70% cacao) is something to be heard, felt, seen, smelled, etc... what would it be?

Hmmm... love is...

that electric feeling in your chest (butterflies in your stomach?) that you get when he/she enters the room (ok, from this point on, i'll only type she; you know what i mean anyway), or when you catch sight of her in a crowd... if you didn't have this feeling everytime you saw her... you would know that you were dead.

the sensation of her hand in yours... when you are strolling along together, watching a movie in a theater, sitting across from each other at the dinner table... and, automatically, so naturally, your thumb gently caresses her hand while you're holding it... as if you are trying to feel the texture of her skin under yours.

the scent of her perfume on the bedsheets, on her blouse, or in the bathroom, and you walk in, and it's still in the air, so fresh that you can even taste it a little bit... and the first thing that comes to your mind is her... you might have just seen her 10 seconds ago, or maybe she's in another room... but you smell or taste her perfume... and your thoughts go from drifting and floating (maybe you are thinking "how long have i been shaving with the same razer blade... must be getting dull") to intensely focused on the image of her in your mind... the memory of her smell... as if you hadn't seen her in years.

the feeling of the blanket falling over your shoulder as you take a nap... because you were cold, and she came to the bed and covered you... and even in your sleep, you know she is there.
it's the feeling of being lost... of never wanting food or drink or sleep for the rest of your life... if you are apart.

the anger and shame at yourself that boils up inside when you know you lost your temper with her.

the feeling of the melting away of that anger when you see her laugh and smile... to tell you she's not mad at you.

the feeling of being tired when you spend hours cooking her a fancy meal as a surprise before she comes home... the feeling when you remember that you wanted to do it for her, and it doesn't matter how much of a pain in the ass it is... because you want if for her.

the frustration when you build her a shelf... and it doesnt come out exactly right... and you have to start all over again.

the feeling like you are falling off a cliff... when you see tears come to her eyes... and you want to reach out and grab her, comfort her, and make the tears stop... but maybe you can't... maybe comforting her is like grabbing the air as you fall.

the sound of her voice when she calls you buy your pet name... her voice that fills every cavity inside you, fills the air underneath your skin... the connection with your heart that her voice made... so you don't even realize at all that it was your ears that heard her voice first.. and not your whole body.

the weight of her head on your shoulder as she sleeps next to you on the couch

love is... stimulating every and any possible sense... and sometimes, whether it's the waves of passion or the stinging pangs of loss... it's too much for you and your fragile body... and the feelings have no where left to escape to except in the form of tears... and love with the force of a billion tons becomes embodied by just a few drops of water."