If You Love Me
If you love me you will accept me the way I am.
If I love you I will accept you the way you are.
Are you saying only you can define my love for you?
But you don’t accept me the way I am, so I guess you don’t love me.
If you love me you wouldn’t judge me.
If I love you I won’t judge you.
Aren’t you judging me by saying I’m judging you?
Apparently, your judgeship is higher ranking than mine.
If you love me you wouldn’t hurt my feelings.
If I love you I won’t hurt your feelings.
Are you saying I can only express my feelings if it doesn’t hurt yours?
It is clear we have different definitions of love.
Because . . .
If I love you I will accept you the way you are;
And I will expect you to do the same of me.
I will be judgmental, but I will not condemn;
And I will request that you be the same.
I may hurt your feelings, unintended;
but hope that we can explore and heal.
I may get my feelings hurt, too;
but hope that we can learn and grow.
Love is not a list of do’s and don’t’s,
or a catalog of expectations.
Love is treating others the same
as we should be treating ourselves.
Love is having the power to destroy
but never using it.
About this poem
People so often use "if you love me" expectations against others, without really applying those same expectations to themselves.
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Written on May 23, 2023
Submitted by LinYoest on May 23, 2023
- 1:18 min read
- 86 Views
Quick analysis:
Scheme | xAbc cbbx ddxx x Acxexxbxdxex xx |
---|---|
Closest metre | Iambic pentameter |
Characters | 1,237 |
Words | 262 |
Stanzas | 6 |
Stanza Lengths | 4, 4, 4, 1, 12, 2 |
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"If You Love Me" Poetry.com. STANDS4 LLC, 2024. Web. 28 Apr. 2024. <https://www.poetry.com/poem/161095/if-you-love-me>.
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