Love is such a beautiful and intense human emotion that deserves to be honored and celebrated. Heck, we have an entire holiday around celebrating love in Valentine’s Day. And while many of us tend to initially think about romantic love when we think of love, there are so many other types of love worth celebrating as well. It’s actually quite beautiful how these various types love shape so much of our lives. Love is the very foundation of so many of the bonds we share with those we cherish the most. Even when we’re not actively conscious that what we’re feeling is love. Love is also what drives our values and how we interact with the world around us. It also shapes how we view ourselves and live our lives.
Certainly, love is a complicated and complex emotion, in all its lovely forms. It drives so many of our other emotions, and it is often the underlying reason why we feel a certain way. After all, we often feel the strongest emotions when it comes to those we cherish the most. Whether those emotions are positive or negative. Love is why it feels so wonderful to text your best friend, or to snuggle up with your partner on a random Tuesday night. It’s also the reason we react so strongly to a perceived or legitimate betrayal, and we can’t just get over it. Love is also why we may become enraged or horrified at injustice or tragedy in the news, even if we didn’t know anyone involved in the story personally.
So even if we want to roll our eyes at it sometimes, love is what drives our lives. Truly, all of the various types of love are more than worth celebrating. After all, they are what make us human.
Romantic Love — Eros
While romantic love can certainly be complicated, especially in today’s dating climate, we can’t pretend that it’s not beautiful and meaningful. Especially when you find that special person that you’re compatible with, and who has all the green-flag qualities. It’s absolutely wonderful to cherish and nurture the love that you have for such an encouraging, gentle, and supportive person in your life. Romantic love isn’t something to be ashamed of or feel you have to be nonchalant about. Even if society may be leading us to believe that it’s cringey or performative. If you have a partner who brings joy into your life, don’t be afraid to express that to them. Love them both out loud and quietly, without holding back.
Building a life with that one special person is such a beautiful form of love. Especially when the two of you are on the same page about how you want that life to look. It’s up to you whether you choose marriage or just a lifelong partnership. Maybe you want children, or maybe you just want to enjoy the presence of each other, and maybe a few pets. Perhaps you want to go on big adventures together or just enjoy your shared hobbies together. As long as you’re both consenting and on the same page, while also being willing to compromise, there’s no right or wrong way to love each other. Let your relationship be serious and playful at the same time, and nourish it so it lasts.
Friendship – Philia
Friendship is such a deep and meaningful form of love that absolutely can not be overlooked. Honestly, it can be just as intense as romantic love in its own beautiful way. After all, our friends are a part of our chosen family. They are among the first people that we want to share all of our best moments with, and the first people we want to celebrate when good things happen for them. Our friends are also such an important part of our support system through all of life’s ups and downs. And oftentimes, the goal is for those friendships to be lifelong. We often trust our friends in the same way we trust our partner in a healthy romantic relationship.
Our closest friends are those with whom we’re able to be our authentic selves. They’re often the people whose opinions and advice matter the most to us. If we get married, they’re the first to be invited to our wedding, and even have important roles in it. We imagine the adventures we want to have with our friends in our elder years. As well as all the adventures we wish to have along the way. And while we may not always consciously process it as love, it’s one of the most intense forms of love there is. Heck, a friendship breakup can hurt just as much as a romantic breakup; if not worse. Certainly, friendship is not something to be undermined.
So let’s celebrate and honor our friendships and nourish them so that they last. Let’s show our friends how much they mean to us, and celebrate the deep bonds we share. Because, honestly, our friendships are just as important as our bonds with our partners and family members.
Familial Love – Storge
While familial love can also be quite complicated at times, sometimes even more so than romantic love, it’s such a beautiful form of love. Especially when the love from your family is truly unconditional and supportive. Oftentimes, friendship can also exist within families, in its own unique way. Certainly, there is a special bond between a parent and their child, or a grandparent and their grandchild. Not to mention the special type of friendship that exists between siblings, who both uplift and playfully tease each other. There’s something truly beautiful about supportive and unconditionally loving bonds between families.
I’d also like to acknowledge the bonds between extended family members, such as aunts, uncles, and cousins. And step-family also absolutely counts as family members we share this love for. Especially when they fully took on the role of being family, sometimes even more so than a biological relative. There is room for interpretation for family beyond blood. And there are so many beautiful ways that a family can look. Especially as family also includes pets, and the unconditional love between us and our pets. Familiar love is one of the most beautiful and sweetest types of love there is, especially when it’s truly unconditional.
While we may not get to choose our family, when there’s genuine love between family members, it’s something to be cherished and celebrated.
Love For Humanity — Agape
One of the most beautiful things about being human is our ability to have love and compassion for others, even if we don’t know them. Certainly, we are going to be closer to our partners, friends, and family than acquaintances and strangers. But there’s still a beautiful love within us for other people, just because they’re a human being. Heck, this love is also extended to animals and even nature, and life itself. You don’t need to have a deep bond with somebody to have empathy and to wish comfort, wellness, and joy upon them. We don’t even have to know someone to see their humanity and their worthiness of love.
It is this love for humanity that drives us to activism and shapes our core values. It is what fuels our anger and sadness when we witness injustice and cruelty. It’s why we have such a strong emotional reaction to what we may see in the news, even from across the globe. This love for humanity is also why we feel so inclined to protect children and help elders that we’ve never even met. Or why we may even choose a certain career path. Heck, it’s why we won’t even let the door slam in that stranger’s face at the coffee shop, as it only takes an extra few seconds to hold the door open. It’s beautiful to have love for everyone, especially in such a harsh and often heartless world.
Honestly, this is a love that we all need to be honoring, nourishing, and strengthening. Basic love and respect for humanity is one of the most essential types of love to feel. And all it takes is a bit of empathy and compassion, and recognition of the humanity in others.
Self-Love — Philautia
Self-love is arguably the most important type of love of them all, and genuine self-love is in no way selfish. As a matter of fact, self-love actually expands our ability to give and receive all the other types of love. After all, when we love ourselves, we’re more receptive to the love of our loving partner and our dear friends. And we’re able to give that love back, without building walls to protect ourselves because of our own doubts. And when we have a healthy relationship with ourselves, we can mirror that example to our families. Imagine being the role model for your child, grandchild, or sibling to love themselves unconditionally and be confident as their authentic selves.
Those who truly love themselves are also often kinder to others, as they’re not projecting their own insecurities onto others. Nor do they feel the need to judge or compare others, as they know everyone is just doing their best. Just like they are. Self-loving people have a cup that’s so overflowing with abundance that they want everyone to infuse that same positivity into their own lives. They also know that they can’t pour from an empty vessel, and they have strong boundaries to protect their hearts and their peace. Self-loving people are naturally a light in this world, while also knowing it’s not their responsibility to fix everyone and everything.
Self-loving people are those confident difference makers who naturally manifest abundance that overflows and also fills the cup of others. So you know what? Self-love is actually inherently selfless. Because true self-love doesn’t come from the ego. It comes from radical self-acceptance and growth.
Conclusion
In so many beautiful ways, love is the very foundation of our lives as humans. Whether it be the mutual love we share for our wonderful romantic partner, or the deep connection we have with our closest friends. Or the bonds shared between family members, blood or not. All the types of love that we feel are worth honoring and celebrating. Including the general love, respect, and compassion we feel for coworkers, acquaintances, and strangers. Love can be deep and serious. Love can also be playful and lighthearted. Sometimes, love can simply be surface-level compassion for someone, just because they’re a human or living being too.
And let’s also not forget to love ourselves unapologetically. As we’re also extremely worthy of our own love, respect, and compassion. And loving ourselves will only expand our capacity to give and receive all the other beautiful types of love.
How do you honor and celebrate the various types of love that you feel? How do you like to nurture those loving bonds? I’d love to hear from you.
No Comments Yet
This post doesn't have any comments yet.