Squandrous

For free.

Maria sent me a wonderful link to a story about a man that has put a rose by his wife’s bedside every day for 60 years. It’s a story about selflessness and true love with no strings attached. And it warms my heart.

Not completely sure why, but it also reminded me of this quote by Tom Robbins that I found on beautifulordinaire’s tumblelog:

Love is the ultimate outlaw. It just won’t adhere to any rules. The most any of us can do is to sign on as its accomplice. Instead of vowing to honor and obey, maybe we should swear to aid and abet. That would mean that security is out of the question. The words “make” and “stay” become inappropriate. My love for you has no strings attached. I love you for free.

I love you for free.

What a remarkable way to express what, in my eyes, is the only way to love: wholly and without need for reciprocation, completely selflessly. When you love someone for free, you don’t expect them to love you back, to thank you, to even acknowledge the fact that you do — you simply love them because that’s what you feel, that’s what you do, that’s who you are.

When I tell someone that I love them, that’s really what I mean: that I love them for free. That how they feel and what they do makes no difference in how I love them. Corny, perhaps. But true.