Why we need love stories… #writingromance #amwriting #amreading

“Sometimes a person needs a story more than food to stay alive.” ~ Barry Lopez

And sometimes only a love story will suffice.

Love stories anchor us to the world as no other vehicle does. We discover our moral and ethical path as we honor another and ourselves. That is never truer than when we love another as an equal, or seek to elevate them to a position of perfect unity, like musical notes in perfect accord.

Eros drives the initial attraction, that intense sexual desire and physical explosion. In that moment of sexual release, where two bodies seek completeness, there is a brief flash of infinity. Once that moment passes, what is left?

This is where the true heart of every love story emerges. This is where the lovers must journey inward as they also journey outward toward understanding and embracing this other person as a part of themselves. It is an awakening of the spiritual because now, this other person’s welfare and care becomes as important to the lover’s life as his own needs.

We are not two halves seeking wholeness. Rather, we are each wholes seeking our perfect complement. Since the beginning of time, love stories teach us to see ourselves more clearly, thus opening the door to the possibility of unity and understanding with another.