I think I have fallen in love. I must profess that I’ve fallen hopelessly, head-over-heels in love with essences of everything I’ve encountered in my life. I know I’ll be met with skepticism at these bold assertions. After all, isn’t love supposed to be a serious thing? Weren’t we taught that we should protect our choice to love, that we should tuck it away like that expensive bottle of champagne that’s only reserved for special occasions? We’ve made proclaiming our love a big deal!
I must first clarify the difference between loving something versus being in love. Being in love carries a completely unique and powerful connotation. Loving someone is more about selflessly desiring only the best for someone — it’s an active sentiment. But falling in love is more involuntary. It’s all in the wording of the phrase — falling. We don’t ascend in love, nor do we sprint toward love — we fall in love. We are seized by a powerful sentiment that consumes us and we plunge into admiring something or someone wholeheartedly.
I used to be against the idea of being in love with anything that I enjoyed. I thought it was silly to consider myself to be falling in love with simple, everyday experiences or even falling in love with others in a platonic way. Love, for me, could only be offered to family, romantic partners and maybe a few lifelong friends. But that was it — I fell into the misconception of believing that my love must not be wasted on any petty or trivial things. I assumed that it would be too much to tell all of my friends that I’m in love with the friendships we’ve cultivated — much less for my male friends.
And so my love was bound by the unwritten rules of my surroundings. Even though I had so much love to give and would often ache to shout it from the rooftops, I was not brave enough to declare that I was in love.
But recently, I realized that life can be enjoyed so much more by allowing myself to fall in love with whatever that my heart is drawn to. Allowing myself to fall in love with everyday things has completely transformed my outlook on life — I am able to appreciate the little things that make living worthwhile. I’ve realized that it’s these little moments and interactions that actually motivate me to get up for the day. Since then, I have fallen in love with everything.
I’m in love with the first piercing inhale of cold air in the morning. I’m in love with my best friend and how her eyes light up when she figures out the Wordle in three attempts or less. I’m in love with feeling my muscles stretch and expand while doing yoga. I’m in love with long, late-night phone calls. I’m in love with giving my friends warm embraces with an extra squeeze at the end to say goodbye. I’m in love with the way my bachata partner effortlessly twirls and moves me to the music. I’m in love with watching snow drift beside a street lamp, how it feels like I’m frozen in time and space in a single moment.
We may not always realize it, but we’re constantly in love with parts of our days and lives — it’s what drives us. Most of the time, it’s not the long-term goals and aspirations that motivate us to carry out our obligations. Sometimes, what makes life meaningful and worthwhile are the beautiful, overlooked moments that make up our day-to-day routines. I think we just need to take a deep breath every once in a while and reflect on what we truly value. Life provides so many opportunities to fall in love, I wouldn’t know how to survive if I didn’t fall in love with a part of everyone.
I am happy to say that I’ll continue to allow myself to fall in love with everything and I hope to start vocalizing it more. It’s been a habit that has enhanced my experiences and enabled me to appreciate the lovely things in my life. I might be the only one that feels this way and I’m O.K. with that. This may not be for everyone, but maybe we could all enjoy life a little bit more if we just admitted we are in love.
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