Love appears to be simultaneously a gateway to peace and pain. For this reason, we run to it and away from it. Do you know anyone who has felt pain because they loved? Most of us—maybe all—know someone who has faced such hardship. If we ourselves experienced it, hopefully, we gained lessons from it. However, viewing pain as something we benefit from going through is contrary to the wisdom of the times. Across society, for many, evading pain is the goal. – This is evidenced by the global pain management drugs market size, which currently accounts for USD 87.19 billion, and is forecasted to hit around USD 125.68 billion by 2034! As a people, we are in pain and submerged in a state of perpetual alertness, like tourists in a National Park waiting for a lion to emerge.

Unfortunately, the lion we are fleeing is also what we need to survive and thrive. – It is love. As reported in a Stanford Medicine article, brain studies indicate that love can provide amazingly effective pain relief. The effects are similar to painkillers or illicit drugs such as cocaine!

A gateway to peace or pain?

Today, many believe that love does not protect the giver and exposes one to pain. Such thinking makes love an irresponsible decision. However, it is not so! Although we are practically guaranteed pain when we choose to love another, it is defensible. Studies show it is what keeps our hearts beating longer – literally! Love is the riskiest, yet most responsible investment one can make. Nevertheless, while risk accompanies love, true love does not consciously leave the object of affection in peril.

However, we often hear of people who sought love and received pain, not peace. Such stories tell us that love is a risky business with little protection. Fortunately, this could not be further from the truth!

Love protects.

Protection is a quintessential quality of love: A giver of true love seeks refuge for the recipient, even above self. This pertains to all facets of love. To better understand, we need to look no further than the actions of a mother with her child.

Not too long ago, I heard a heart-wrenching story about the family of a friend. It went like this: A woman desired to have a child, and after many years, she got pregnant. A few months into her pregnancy, her doctor informed her that due to health complications, it would be safest to induce an abortion. – The prognosis was that if the baby grew to full term, the woman could lose her life. However, the woman could not imagine doing anything that would hurt her child. Therefore, she decided to take the risk and carry the baby to full term. Unfortunately, during childbirth, she developed unresponsive wakefulness syndrome and never emerged. Essentially, her baby lived because she did not.

When no cost is too high.

When some hear this story, they might feel no compassion and blame the woman for her demise. Others may understand the rationale for her decision and admire her selflessness and courage.

Inarguably, her decision was sacrificial and courageous. She believed the child deserved a future and offered them the opportunity to live, even at the expense of losing her own. The CliffsNotes version of this story is one line: love protects even at the expense of oneself. Indeed, love is for the courageous, i.e., those who dare to act despite fear.

For you and to you,
Aké

Image credit: Pixabay | one_life