The Irish Independent

Asking For A Friend

Love can mean different things to different people, but I would describe love as a feeling of safety, peace, trust, calmness, and connection with another person. It is tinged with lust in the early days of a relationship and then transforms into a calmer, day-to-day love which looks like feeling comfortable and facing the world as a team. Love is feeling that you can be your true self with another person, and they accept you for who you are. Dating can feel exciting, and some people struggle with the transformation of lustful excitement into comfortable calmness, but long-term love is calm — the opposite of feeling like you are on a rollercoaster, not knowing what the next turn brings.