Love is not enough. It took me about 37 years to figure that out. Literature, cinema and even the well-meaning people with rich life experiences, very conveniently forget to mention that the perfect glue to relationships is something else. Definitely, not love. Love, perhaps is the icing on the cake but the very base is something else. We get so dazzled by the colorful, tempting sweet cream that we begin romanticizing about relishing it and forget about the sponge cake beneath. What happens when the sponge cake is too soggy? It breaks. The romance comes to a halt. I don't like eating a cake (icing? who cares!) with a bad texture. How about you?
Respect is the fundamental requirement for any sort of a relationship. That's the cake beneath the icing. If that's perfectly baked and is drizzled with the right amount of syrup, even with a bad topping it is quite edible. Remove the icing, and you shall still enjoy it.
Let me elaborate. Where does it fit? In every nook and corner. Respecting an individual means absolute acceptance of the good, the bad and the ugly that comes along. Respecting is non-maleficence if not beneficence. Respect doesn't waver; it is not fleeting. Respect is non-judgmental and empathetic.
It is the most precious gift that can be given or received. Autonomy is a beautiful thing and respect empowers you with it. Earn it, keep it and you'll know incredible peace.
Respect is non-negotiable.
How would these respect-infused relationships be? Cakewalk! 😉
(PS: Before you ask, lately, I did deliver a lecture on bioethics and had a piece of lousy cake)
