Thoughts at the end of a good year.

I believe we have an innate obligation to love, most of us, anyway.  Do we ever actually examine that love?  Not that loved one but the emotion itself.  If I feel that I love someone in particular how do I manage that love.  I subscribe to the idea that it should be unconditional.  What does that mean and how does it apply to the object of this love?  Will there always be love there or is it capable of fading?  Can I imagine it fading.  If I can then my guess is it is not truly unconditional.  I am always intrigued by the relationships friends have with their exes.  Where there is animosity and hate I suspect there was never real love.  Lust, desire, need, control, power, resignation, convention, security maybe seemed like love but were probably not love.  I think that’s why exes find it so easy to dislike each other; there was never anything really deep to warrant otherwise. Many will argue this point but I think it is pretty clear. I think this also applies to parents, children and siblings.  Convention wants us [expects us] to love each other but there has to be more than convention.  Maintaining unconditional love involves a lot of other emotions and dynamics.  Communication, forgiveness, understanding, support and generosity all enhance the experience of unconditional love.  I think one of the greatest dangers is demanding, even merely expecting love back.   Then is this the antithesis of unconditional, to expect love back? I also believe that we are capable of directing this toward more that one individual.  Some, the truly enlightened [?], the elevated [?] can possibly direct it toward all of humanity.  They are likely to end up incarcerated or institutionalized.  I guess I’ll try to keep it to one or two… or three.