About Love

In the middle of the night when everyone slept, I lay on my bed as thoughts about love crept my way.

I thought of how this word of just four letters can add so much meaning into one's life.

I went back to times when I was just a child and recalled how my mother would hug me and comfort me and even though in my eyes my problems were big but one hug from my mom was enough to rid me off from what I thought was too bleak.

A simple cake baked by my mom with love was all it took for me to forget and shun away all the pain and dilemmas which I thought were unbearable to endure. Well at least as a child a cake was the only comforting magic I thought of. But as I grew and learned and became more weary of this word called “life” I began to realise for sure that it was not just the cake but it was the all the possible ways that my Mom loved me.

As I take a trip down memory lane I am still able to recall that the home that we lived in had a very small kitchen space. My Mom would carry me and put me on the kitchen counter. It's on this very same counter my Mom would whip up the cake batter by hand with the help of a spatula as I quietly and carefully watched this mixture transform into magic. My mom would grease a pan the size of the pan that had to be precisely small enough to fit into a pressure cooker. We had no oven but had a gas stove with two gas plates on it. The pressure cooker had to be heated enough for it to bake a cake. As the pressure cooker acted as an oven.

I would watch my Mom pour the batter into the pan and thereafter carefully place it into the pressure cooker and close the lid. She would then keep tabs of the time. In the meantime I would dip my finger into the empty bowl and scrape off all the uncooked batter and lick it up. I must confess that the raw batter also tasted very delicious.

My mom would place me back on the floor and I remember she'd tell me that “once it's ready I shall let you know”. The home would be filled with the rich aromas of vanilla. It used to be very challenging for me to patiently wait for the cake to bake and as if this was not enough, waiting for it to cool down after cooking was unimaginable. But all the waiting was worth it. Mom would slice a piece of cake and within minutes of being served there would not even be a trace of the crumbs remaining on the plate. After enjoying this delightful cake I would run towards my Mom, hug her and kiss her on her cheeks.

As my Mom grew older I never shied away from baking the most delicious cakes for her. Her favourite cake was chocolate cake with chocolate butter icing on it. It always remained her favourite and was always her ultimate choice. I baked it for her during her birthdays, on mother's day and also during valentines day. As a matter of fact I didn't even have to wait for any occasion. I would be happy to bake her this cake which she fondly relished.

Interestingly you'd be surprised to learn that according to the ancient Greek philosophy there are seven different kinds of love and what each in brief means starting with Philia ~ this kind of love is simply where you want the best for one another, an affectionate and friendly one.
Agape ~ this kind of love shows empathy and is intended for everyone.
Storge ~ this love is often directed to family for example from parents to children and vice versa.
Pragma ~ to sum up this love would actually mean that love of a married couple. This is an everlasting kind of love whereby one witnesses couples who choose to remain with each other through thick and thin.
Philautia ~ often mistaken as “selfishness”, “self- love” is one of the most challenging forms of love. One needs to learn that not only is giving love important but it is also as important to be loved. It also teaches to learn about self worthiness and becoming a confident being.
Eros ~ The Greek God of Love and Fertility is also known as Eros. Passion, lust, romance by being physical ( sensual love) between two lovers can rightly be used to describe this love.
Ludus ~ This can be described as flirtatious, playful, usually a noncommittal type of love.

As you familiarise yourselves to how the Greeks have finely defined so many forms of love, what is it that you think is absent or which aspect would you like to change or improve?

I personally think that it would be very safe for me to say that everyone has a different opinion on interpreting Love but if I would just have to define love in just one word for me it would have to be “mom”.

I shall continue to celebrate and honour You my Mom for I know that You still continue to bless me.
Mom You Forever Live In My Heart, For Every Beat In My Heart Reminds Me That You Are Just A Heartbeat Away.

By Disha Sharma