All For Granted

Everyone makes mistakes in life. Most are fairly fixable. Whether it's a math problem you make a mistake on, or a harmless mistake on the job. However some mistakes cost people their lives, literally and metaphorically. Heres one mistake I'm going to ask everyone not to make.

And that mistake is taking love for granted.

I'm not talking about loving your neighbor, or loving each other as people. I'm talking about romantic love. I'm not talking about middle school or high school love, which is actually just a thinly veiled carnal urge. I'm talking about legitimate "I-would-be-put-in-a-real-life-situation-of-the-movie-'Saw'-so-you-wouldn't-have-to-love" or the "I'm-willing-to-quit-my-job-and-live-on-a-deserted-island-for-the-rest-of-forever-with-you-love."

An online dictionary. www.usingenglish.com defined "Take for Granted" perfectly, "If you take something for granted, you don't worry or think about it because you assume you will always have it. If you take someone for granted, you don't show your appreciation to them."

A friend of mine once argued that all emotions are chemical, and love is only a physiological response to other interactions and experiences. Even in the most literal sense, I find this cannot be true. Love is nothing short of a God-given gift. It doesn't matter if you're religious or not, no one can argue that love is not just a math problem, but a miracle of nature.

If you're in one of these aforementioned relationships, let me ask you, let me beg you - don't take it for granted. Realize that this ability and this relationship, this bond that you have with this person is a gift, and should absolutely be treasured. Don't ever assume it will always be there, don't ever forget to appreciate it. Indulge it with everything you are.

Stay until she falls asleep, because she wants you there. Do everything you hate just to see a smile on her face. Choose her over other fun and friendly activities, because she's your best friend. Be the last one to text her before she falls asleep, and set your alarm for a few minutes before hers, so you can be the first to text her when she wakes up. Bring her coffee in a snowstorm, and take her shopping in a rainstorm. Don't ever miss an opportunity to tell her how much you love her.

What if you don't do these things? What if you take this miraculously given love for granted?
What if you don't appreciate every last part of it?

I'll let you draw your own conclusion of what could happen from here.