Defining Love

I have to admit that I have been guilty of assuming that love did mean to a certain extent belonging or should I say possessing. It could have been an inanimate object  or people, but it always had to  end with "I want", as if it was a physical entity that could be captured and  enslaved.As you grow older, your notion of what comprises love changes too
Love though empowering is also free, it cannot be enslaved and it definitely is not about making us feel happy.  It is free-will, it is being responsible, it is making sure that the object of love is happy. The deeper you dig, the more you realize that it is unconditional,and definitely an action verb. Loving means giving the other person space to grow as an individual, to breathe. It is letting  a person feel safe enough to be who they are , to just be. I personally believe any relation - whether it is between spouses, or friends or parents and children is healthy only if both are growing and evolving to be better person.

Acceptance and  wishing for the other person's happiness is what love is all about. It doesn't matter if the love is among friends, spouses or parents and kids. In the end it is all about ensuring that the person you love is happy. Unconditional love is the only genuine love, where there is no ulterior motive, rare find. 

There are some relations where the balance is unhealthy. There is one giver and one taker - the taker a parasite whose very existence is dependent on others. They demand love, attention, and are so empty within, that you can give all you, drain yourself out, but the desire remains insatiable. Givers find their purpose in life by giving - giving till they are empty.

Leeching on to other people for your emotional needs, is not love. As a parent my job is to fill my kids to the brim with love and self-esteem. Yet making sure they know that love is renewable, only from within. Again only people who are fully content with what they have, who have no need for validation from other people, are the people who are capable of love.