We need to hear more love stories about the things new parents laugh about at 4 am, screaming baby, no sleep. We need love stories about brothers. And men in general, ask each other about their feelings. We need love stories about all the things left on friends' porches this year. People who wave at each other on the street. We need more love stories about women choosing themselves, loving themselves, prioritizing rest and peace, and opting out without explanation.
We need more love stories about the beauty of the little things, the connections that don't need words, the times we just sit with each other, the moments of grace, and the joys of shared humanity. We need more love stories about being vulnerable and honest and real, about learning and growing, and about being there for each other. We need more love stories that show that it's okay to make mistakes, to be wrong, and to be in the wrong.
We need more love stories that make us feel seen, heard, and understood, even when the world is a difficult place. We need more love stories that remind us that love is powerful and resilient, no matter the circumstances. We need more love stories that show us how to be kind and generous, how to forgive, and how to find hope in the midst of chaos. We need more love stories that show us how to make our relationships stronger, and how to keep them alive.
We need to hear more love stories about anyone who've been together for thirteen years, still bringing each other a glass of water unprompted. And the things they continue to argue about; either silly and small or the argument that turns the room into lava but they keep returning to it, and to each other as if to ask will you still meet me? We need love stories about people who met at the wrong time. And the right time.
We need love stories about people who have been in it for the long haul and have seen the world change and evolve around them, yet still, find each other. We need love stories about people who have seen each other through the worst and the best and have grown and changed together but still choose each other in the end. We need love stories that make us laugh, cry, and hope.
We need to hear more love stories about love that felt more like a quiet afternoon rather than fireworks exploding in the sky. We need more love stories that start with first I messed everything up and then. We need more love stories about all the people we loved and never told/loved and couldn't be with/ loved and let go/loved and still had to leave. We need more love stories about looking at ourselves in the mirror, will all our self-neglect and self-abandonment and self-loathing, and realizing that if we find something gentle to say to ourselves at this moment, then this is a love story too.
We need more love stories that remind us that love is everywhere and in everything, even when it doesn't feel like it. We need more love stories that bring us comfort and remind us that we are never alone. We need more love stories that remind us that love is worth fighting for, worth celebrating, and worth cherishing.
