This Is The Kind Of Love You Should Hold Out For

Our generation romanticizes unrequited love. We seem to be uncannily addicted to drama – glorifying pain as “martyrdom” and emotional abuse as “effort.” Too often, we forget that love should make us better and happier. If you are one of those people, let me remind you – don’t settle. You are worth it and you deserve so much more.

Here is the kind of love you should hold out for.

Hold out for the kind of love that accepts you – the quirks, the intensity, the passion you can give; the kind of love that deems your efforts as romantic and not cheesy; the kind of love that appreciates shared inside jokes and exchanged knowing looks.

Hold out for the kind of love that supports you – the kind of love that buys you books on “how to take perfect pictures” when you say you are interested in photography; the kind of love that stays up late at night discussing travel itineraries and ticket prices because you’ve promised each other you’ll travel the world together; the kind of love that goes to your recital even after a long day’s work because he wants to be there when you make that debut performance.

Hold out for the kind of love that listens to you – the love that asks how your day was and is genuinely interested to hear about it; the love that remembers when you said four months ago that you prefer brown M&M’s over any other color and endeavors to saves up a jar’s worth of brown M&Ms to give to you; the love that is there to give you practical advice when you need it and there to silently hold you when that is all you ask for.

Hold out for the kind of love that is sure and easy – the love that might be filled with challenges and difficulties, but still allows you to say to yourself, with certainty, “this journey is worth it.”

Hold out for the kind of love that makes you feel respected and valued – the love that understands the good days, the bad days, and everything in between; the love that makes you feel not like somebody’s sidekick, but as an equal partner.

Hold out for the kind of love that makes you the best version of yourself – the love that constantly makes you feel good about yourself without making you feel complacent; the love that says “you’re perfect just the way you are” but still manages to inspire you to say to yourself “I can be better.”

Hold out for the kind of love that proves true what Antoine de Sainte Exupery once said: “Love does not consist in gazing at each other, but in looking outward together in the same direction.” I am here to remind you, because too often, you forget: hold out for the kind of love you deserve.