Young Love

"Young love is a flame; very pretty, often very hot and fierce, but still only
light and flickering. The love of the older and disciplined heart is as coals,
deep-burning, unquenchable.

- Henry Ward Beecher

Young love is when you love someone because of what they do right. Mature love is when you love someone in spite of what they do wrong.

- Mark Goulston

It has occurred to me and every so often has bothered me that when I've openly expressed the extent of a relationship with my dad, he always responds "you won't know him a year from now". An expected comment that often spills out your parents mouth more frequently than your young ears probably want to hear. It often minimizes our capability of being open and welcoming them into our love lives, when in return our greatest emotions are shot down and our love parades are rained on. 'Trust me, it isn't love honey' and ' don't rush, enjoy being young' are just as frequenting' when talking to an older yet wise woman. I often wonder "who are they to say it isn't love'. It is evident that they have lived this life far longer than I, but they had to start somewhere right? And their starting point had to have been 'young love' right? Henry Ward Beecher describes it as a 'flame' which I readily agree with. It's a fiery feeling of excitement, curiosity, butterflies fluttering, and commitment. To us, its a milestone, a world wonder, and a priority, so why do they downsize it? Maybe we have yet to experience the 'meet the parents' stage, or the 'off to college' experience, or the 'pregnancy slip up' to see if it would truly hold through, but you have to crawl before you walk and think before you speak right? What I mean is, before we get to those points we have to fully know our significant other and build a foundation for our relationship before the hurdles are put forth. His charming smile, outgoing personality, suave features and debonair finesse may have been what has caught your attention, but his respect for women, family, your feelings, growth and goals, alongside his ambitions, independence, intelligence, conversation capability, and maturity is what will keep you. So don't allow our wisest elders to downplay the 'light and flickering' emotion that is 'young love' because at one point they too were here and it was all they ever wanted. It's a learning experience, and if you can't learn to balance a relationship and be a 'liking' girlfriend, how will you later develop and become a 'loving' wife?