Experiencing Love

True love.

It's acted out in countless movies and TV shows.
I've snuggle up under a blanket with my fair share of romance novels.
Friends talk about their experiences in and out of it.
My parents are definitely in on the secret.
But this weekend, I was dumbfounded by just how powerful, how beautiful it truly is.

Two Saturdays ago, my cousin and her fiancé were married. I've never cried like I did that day.
I felt the tears start to gush and tried to make my mouth stop its absurd quivering. My heart felt like it stopped twice: first when my cousin walked down and then again when her fiancé did.
I know it's clique, but the world stopped. Their love drew everyone and everything in. No one could escape it's warmth.

After the ceremony, my father surprised me in admitting that he cried too.
"Rachael, I've been to a lot of weddings, and this is the first wedding I've ever cried at."

In life there are moments, smiles, poems, or desserts that throw you for a loop. This wedding was one of them. As I stepped back into the pace of my life back here in Maryland, I saw things a bit differently. Just as study abroad spun me around to see the world differently, the wedding nudged me to see the people in my life differently.

Our lives our filled to the brim with people, be it best friends or strangers on the bus. Every day, there are new moments that we experience with each other. Before the wedding, I tried to hold on to these moments and to remember. Like many people, I tried to notice the little things and try to appreciate life. I was missing something crucial, though. I hadn't even realized it.

Love.

Being nice to others, smiling, holding the door open, hugging a close friend is all good. But behind those actions, is there love? The incredible love I experienced between my cousin and her fiancé
opened my eyes to what we should be doing.
We should love each other and act towards each other with love. To love is to genuinely care about someone and listen to how their day was. To love is to share their hopes and their dreams. To love is to hold them tight when the pain seems too much.

If we can love those closest to us as well as those farthest away from us, our lives will be so full. Our lives will be so full of cherished moments and happiness that we won't have any space to feel empty.

Thank you, Amanda and Lauren.
I can't wait to become closer with you both and see how you two grow.

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