They say that we search all our lives for love or something close to it. I wonder when it is appropriate to actually tell someone that you love them. I see people who have only dated others for maybe a month and they casually will throw in the 3 worded phrase. I have friends who claim that they love me or other friends, but I have a hard time truly believing it. They don't know me as well as I think one should to proclaim their love to me.

My parents, on the other hand, never tell me that they love me. They say actions are stronger than words. Sometimes I think that words cut through a lot more efficiently. I suppose it's at the state of unconditional love that they don't say it. My mom says that her love for me is shown through her cooking me dinner and worrying when I go out, and then freaking out at me if i go out too often. You'd think your parents would be the ones to reassure you that no matter what, they will always love you through words as well as actions.

I tell my dog Ewok that I love him all the time. And I truly do.

I will tell my friends that I love them, only if I really do. There is a difference between actually loving your friends and caring about them. I don't know how to explain it. I suppose it has a lot to do with the amount of trust, connection, and comfort that I feel towards certain ones.

I think people throw around the word 'love' too easily nowadays. It's like the word 'sorry.' People say they're sorry for things that they couldn't possibly control. If they could actually control the outcome of something, then that's when it's appropriate to use "sorry."

Throughout these years, the word love has been rendered almost meaningless. There are song lyrics about falling in love with people because they are beautiful. There are movies about falling in love at first sight. There are commercials about falling in love with Big Macs and Dentyne Ice. Blah blah blah, I'm not saying the media has to do with all of it. People should be well aware of themselves because they have brains, so use it. And hearts as well.

I wonder about people who supposedly fall in love with someone when they've only been seeing them for about a couple of weeks. Even more so when I hear about people who say they love people whom they've never even spoken to. The new phrase they should say is, "I'm in lust!"

But then, when people say, "I love you" it also can be different from actually being in love with someone, in context. It could just mean 'I care about you a lot.' Or it could mean, 'I love the thought of being with you or who you could be.'

In anycase, everyone's definition of love is different.