Shine bright

When you are a light, you deserve to shine brighter next to another light, not someone who looks to you to illuminate them. That's why I think being needed is less of a compliment than being desired and loved. 

I watched an episode of "13 reasons why" yesterday, and this line struck me:

"I can let you go, and still love you." 

The people who can love like this have figured out love. Love is unconditional - but that also means you're not sacrificing the self for the relationship. 

The best relationships bring out your shine - they make your light even brighter, and together you illuminate the world around you. So often we confuse love with need. We think we need another person to make us happy. We think if we can meet someone's needs, that is love. But love is so far beyond need. If you're stuck on the level of need, you're not experiencing the fullness of love. Love is rich and resplendent - until you need nothing and simply desire and love without need - you are not feasting on the limitless banquet of love, you are merely tasting the crumbs that have fallen from the table, always greedy for more. 

The truth is, when you become like a star, and have faced your own darkness, and can shine your own light, the only thing that will touch your soul is to encounter another such light. That is the great love we all hope for, and it begins within us and transforms us so that we are able to recognize the light of another's soul.