What it truly means to love someone...

There are many different ways we can love someone, or multiple people.  For instance, I love my daughter more than any one else on this planet, I love my husband with all the trust and passion I have in me, I love my parents because they brought me into this world, I love my brothers because they make me look sane by comparison, I love my friends because they love me without obligation.

We love in so many different ways, and sometimes I think we lose what loving someone really involves and become selfish in our ideas of how the ones we love should interact with us.

For example:

This morning on Facebook, my brother-in-law was scolded by his step-sister.  Her exact words were:

     "*** dont forget about the rest of ur family just cause u got a new one..."

It took me a bit to come back from that one.  I had to think long and hard about the words I wanted to say to her, without being bitchy, assuming, contrite, and rude.  This was my response:

"*****, I find that incredibly unsupportive.  If you truly cared about *** and his happiness you would understand that his wife is the person, under an OATH TO GOD, he is to be bound and faithful to.  He is being the best father and husband he can be (and *** you're doing a damn amazing job).  The rest of us in his family will always fall after those 3 integral people in his life.  As his sister-in-law, I support him and ***** and those beautiful babies with every beat of my heart, and if that means I have to stand back and love them from a distance, then by God, I will."

Now, I am not a religious person, but my brother-in-law and his wife go to church when he is home, and he is a follower of his faith, and I support that.  So, when I say he took an oath under God, he truly did.

I mention this because it made me think about love and all the different facets it has, and what the importance of showing each person I love and support them is.  There are people in my family and friend circle that I love and I hardly ever get to see.  I would not scold them for seeing them less, I would support them in knowing they have busy lives and we aren't bound to each other by a string that keeps us within a certain distance or time-frame of one another.  A simple phone call, text, e-mail, yearly Holiday card and personalized note, Facebook "like" or comment, etc. with suffice. I feel as long as I make an attempt at keeping in touch with each person, no matter how menial a method I use, I am letting that person know I love them, I am thinking about them, and that I support them still, and I am hoping for the same in return.

What do you think?