What is This "Love" You Speak of?

I am constantly surprised by people's definition of love, and how fast they fall in and out of it.  This "love" that people speak of, in my mind, is infatuation.  You see someone, and there is an extra release of serotonin, dopamine, and norepinephrine in the brain that makes you physically attracted to a person.  This is all fine and good and whatnot, because that's what brings you to want to get to know a person, but you have to wait a few months (at least) to see if you "love"that person, because that's around when infatuation wears off.

To truly love a person, you have to like them despite their faults (like not liking Michael Jackson's music... yes, that equates to a fault in my eyes and makes me question one's judgment) and love them for their funny little quirks.  You not only love a person for what they have the potential to become, but for what they are now.  You realize that you're not always going to get along or see eye to eye, but that it's okay, because there's more than one way to solve any problem.

So, when young people get married after only knowing each other for two or three months, I worry.  I worry that they don't understand the commitment they are making to one another, and that they may just be feeling infatuation that hasn't worn off yet.  Truly, I think that a lot of divorces could be prevented if partners spent at least a year getting to know each other before they decided to get married.  Then each individual would know somewhat of who they are committing their life to before marrying.   Knowledge is power, so they say, so why shouldn't that apply to who you date and who you marry?

Sure, I knew my ex-husband for two and a half years before I married him, and it didn't save me from being divorced.  Some people are great at hiding important facts and lie their way through life, but I'm convinced this isn't the case with most people.  Most people, when looking for a mate, are upright and honest because they don't want to have to hide who they are from the one they love.  So please, my friends, don't make me worry about you because you jump into a relationship and forget to take time to get to know the person you say you "love."  And I'll stop lecturing now.