Hearts are like ships.
The ship that is built but remains tied to the dock does not sink, but it also doesn't go anywhere. That is not the purpose of a ship.
The heart that does not risk does not love and that is not the purpose of the heart.
The analogy holds true. But there is more to it than that. If we leave a ship tied to a dock, it does not sink. But it also falls into disrepair from failure to use it for it's intended purpose. The ship slowly dies. Our efforts to protect the ship from harm are in vain.
And so it is with our hearts. We isolate to protect our hearts from injury. In the process we are blocked from love, both giving and receiving. The heart demands to love and to be loved or it dies. And so we have the great paradox that the only way to insure our hearts remain safe is to actively risk them to the safe keeping of another.
In the end, love wins. It has to, because the concept of a world in which it is not so is far too horrible to contemplate.
Sometimes the hurt is so detrimental that the risk of feeling the hurt again prevents a person from even beginning to open up to any one person to begin to trust. I will admit that i have become a very lonely person who craves love, warmth and companionship. Who has so much love to share but lives with that fear, which has become a safe haven.
ReplyDeleteI truly appreciate your paradox. It has made me realize that this is exactly who I've become...and who i don't want to be. The journey from the hurt to loving again will be hard, but yes, love will win right? It has to. Thank you. ~ml