Vol. 58 No. 30 • February 14, 2017

Does this four letter word ‘LOVE’ really exist? Movies say it does, but life often proves that wrong for many people who after some unsuccessful attempts to make their relationships work; come to a conclusion that there is nothing called love and life can go on without it.

Agreed, romantic love is not the end-all and be-all of one’s existence. Though having a loving partner keeps you inspired, it’s not everything. However, in my personal opinion, I believe, all those who deny love often deny a very simple truth: love exists in many forms. It doesn’t only exist between couples.

You can witness it through various relationships – between mother and her child, two friends or siblings, or just between two people who feel a strong connect with each other, like a feeling that an orphan gets when he is held and cuddled for the first time.

From the day you are born till the day you die, you experience love in different forms. As a child, it is in the form of pampering and affection from your parents and family. When you get into a relationship or marriage, it is in the form of that unexplained happiness that you get out of an emotional bond, affection and intimacy you feel for your partner. With friends, it is in the form of support and when you grow old you expect a caring love from your children. Love can also be for your work, for music, and many other things that make you happy.

As a doctor, I have seen quicker than expected recoveries of patients suffering from the most difficult medical disorders including cancer, when they have strong family support; when they feel loved, wanted and desired by people who make them happy and their life meaningful. I have seen love triumph over many difficult situations in life.

I would like to summarize it this way – while the damaging effects on life of the absence of food and water is more immediate, the absence of love in life is equally as detrimental, though its effects may take longer to realize than just a few days. We need love to be truly happy and feel emotionally as well as spiritually secure.

And for those who are still waiting for that true ‘Ishq wala love,’ don’t lose hope. Love often strikes when it is least expected!!