Is it better to have loved then never loved at all?

     Love... such a small word for something so big don't you think? Its a topic i could probably talk about every day for the rest of my life and would probably never run out of things to say. I have never found it hard to love others, though often i find it hard to love myself. Love can either make you or break you. But Isn't there always a risk in most everything we do in life? This includes the concept of loving. I remember a quote i must have read many times through out my life. " love like you've never been hurt." --Satchel Paige. There is always going to be a chance when you put your heart out there that you will get hurt. So is it better to have loved then never loved at all? Well for one, I do believe that we need to experience Love - the greatest gift life offers us - even if the end result isn't what we were wanting. We might end up being lied to or betrayed, cheated on or wronged in some way. Or we may end up loving someone who does not love us back. But bad experiences not only define us but make us learn and grow. They teach us about ourselves and about what we really want and need in life. The only way we learn this is to take the risk and throw ourselves at it.

      Yes, Sometimes it ends badly and we feel crushed under that hurt. We think we will never feel whole again. Maybe we will say, "I cant take anymore! I cant love anyone else. My heart is too broken." End up avoiding Love just to protect ourselves. But we forget in this moment of hurt something really important. The biggest gift that love offers us is the feeling of being in love. There is nothing quite like it. Its inspirational, electrifying, warm, intoxicating, motivating, and so much more. In those moments, nothing can touch us. Is that worth the risk? Well i believe so. Though after a few heart breaks, I can understand why its easy to feel a little hopeless of a possible happy ending. But we will never know if it will end badly or not. We aren't psychic. We don't know if this one is our "soul mate" till we give it a test run. So why when life puts love in our path do we fight against it? I think being in love and loving is worth the risk. And besides, If we choose to fight it and avoid love. You will have to live with something else that i think is much worse. The concept of regret. The maybe's or what ifs of life. 

     My love life has not been successful yet to this date. Though I do not forget what it was like in the beginning of each relationship i have ever had and the good feelings i experienced. I have had my own roller coaster rides. I can say though, I do know what i am looking for now. I know that when it finds me again, I wont take it for granted. Ill cherish all the special moments and take in all of the glory that is falling and being in love. And if i do get hurt......Ill just get back up, dust myself off and face it again till i do find my happy ending. Because Love is the greatest gift of Life and i love presents. :)