Likewise, it's not our second nature to be kind to those who have nothing to offer us in return. We always seem to want something back. It seems that's why so many couples find dissension through the whole "who gives more" complex. To love is not enough.
And love envies no one? How many times have I wanted to be in a friend's shoes instead of congratulating her for having found the right pair? Some of the best folks I've ever known are the ones who bask in my joy when I'm blessed. Only recently have I discovered that fine art. I really enjoy watching people do what they were seemingly created to do. Nothing is better than seeing my mom get promoted at the hospital or watching a former team mate come back from an injury.
Those parts about love not being boastful, conceited, rude, selfish, or quick to anger... So nonhuman. And foolish. There's an unspoken aggreement of the masses that the way to love is not by baring all and taking in the unavoidable pain with the much sought after beauty. That would be too risky. Instead we conjure up controlled, safe routes to win the approval we crave.
We do this in boasting to gain respect (and feel a twisted sort of love, I suspect). We are conceited because we can't be vulnerable enough to allow others to see the real innards. Rude tendencies, self-driven motives, and anger are no strangers of mine. There's a thread holding them together: they are fear-based and aimed at establishing respect and love through force. We figure that if we just get ahead in the eyes of others, we'll end up on top... and finally, we'll get the special treatment and love we so richly deserve.
However, we deserve none. And it is futile to chase that kind of attention from the world around us. It's very fleeting and shallow (at best). But true, honest to goodness love, seems to be something above us, but within us only because of God's goodness. That is the love that peels away layers and unmasks, but still loves even when the ugly truth is exposed.
