What I Learned From Falling In Love With The Woman I Waited For

‘I love you’ — A sentence often thrown around as if it solely bears the mundane sanctity of tender affection. These three words marked the beginning of an unexpected journey. Sixteen year olds don’t normally perceive love the way I do. The common adolescent would describe love to be ‘infatuation’, looking more on the outside, rather than the inside. Love to most of them is a feeling of intimacy; a temptation of the physical senses that often fade into the evanescence.

What they think is merely a grain of sand in the vast desert of love, blown away by the desert winds representing the truth. On the other hand, what I feel is different. I feel something more than just the physical being; something that involves beauty in the inside that most of my peers fail to see. I feel an endless amount of possibilities, which can take me to an adventure of a lifetime.

The journey didn’t start abruptly. It definitely was not love at first sight . It was a gradual process that took an insane amount of time. In this experience of mine, time wasn’t a friend, nor was it an enemy—time was a teacher. A teacher that taught me the values of patience and determination. I spent 2
years of my time just waiting; waiting for that sign of mutual understanding. And in that span of 2 years, time was unpredictable. There were instances when I drowned in an abyss of misfortunes; though sometimes
it felt like the greatest gift man could ever receive. Although, most of the time it was fleeting like it normally does.

Many doubted me throughout those 2 years. Many questioned me for having to wait for a response that seemed destined to not have come. A lot of my friends told me to let go, and move on. However, what they did not know was that throughout that time of dejection & desperation, I started to fall in love with the person for what we could possibly be. I fell in love with the way she valued her life. It wasn’t her wide face or chinky eyes that I fell in love with first. It was her constant display of unconditional love to her family, her unending
passion to make a difference in this world, her knack of being a simple girl with a very big heart that caused me to have this attachment with her. It took patience to realize all this.

Nonetheless, I am glad the value of patience showed me and stayed with me; discovering the real meaning of beauty. I learned that the authenticity of beauty is not determined by someone’s physical attributes. Beauty is authentic when it is determined through a process which requires patience in seeing the person’s truest form. My relationship with time wasn’t the most pleasant; yet I learned to accept and see what time could offer.

It was through that period of waiting where time taught me to love the beauty that lies within. It took awhile for her to realize my intentions were true. It took her a long time to comprehend that maybe, just maybe, I would be right for her.

When she did, I died inside knowing my dream came true. The feeling was surreal. 2 years of waiting finally paid off. It was then when I started to believe that dreams do come true if you put your whole heart into it.

As the relationship started to bud into potentially something special, it hit me when I discovered that love doesn’t necessarily mean all things good. The first months taught me that there will be ups; and there will be downs. As love unfolds, you realize that love is not all about the laughter and smiles you’ve
shared. Love takes into account the arguments, fights, sadness, and tears, which you will also have to learn to cherish. Most importantly, love brings out the worst in us. It isn’t just about admiring the beauty they possess; it’s also about accepting their imperfections; making their flaws into something that is welcomed and loved, converting their weaknesses into strengths, assuring their insecurities should never be used to lower down self-esteem.

The girl I fell in love with may have seemed perfect at first, but then time showed that she was human too. She may not be the most gorgeous looking out there; she might possess a great amount of insecurities; and she may love to get into arguments. Nevertheless, these are the things that make her
beautiful. Love taught me the value of acceptance, and through that, I learned to love the flaws in her. I learned to appreciate the times of struggle. Our imperfections made us real, which was critical in love. It really only had to be real, never perfect.

Ultimately, love taught me to be patient, determined, and accepting not only in romantic relationships, but also in the real world. The experience of having to fall in love shaped me to be the person I am today. I felt like it made me a more empathetic, and mature person. People my age should know that love is not something we should generalize to just romance. Love has the capability to change your point-of-view on numerous things. Loves makes you want to be a more wholesome person, a person of good values.

One day, I wish people my age recognize that the sentence “I love you” is more than being infatuated by a pretty face; it’s an expression that encompasses the soul.