"I Love You" :: SL and RL Meaning
I had a very insightful conversation with an avatar in SL. The topic was on SL relationships. They had told me that they had been spending a certain amount of time with a particular avatar with whom they enjoyed the company of. Just recently this avatar was told by their 'friend' how much they were liked and appreciated. In other words, they mentioned the "L" word in a sentence.
"I Love You."
It had not occurred to me that this statement would and could take on a different dimension here in SL. Afterall, wouldn't it have the same meaning and implications and obligations it may have in RL?
Now think about it. Would it?
Granted, there are many ways in which the sentence "I Love You" can be said and taken to mean, depending on the context.
But no matter to what level one chooses to take their particular 'meaning' of the word/emotion "LOVE" - just the mere thought and acknowledgement of that word "LOVE" puts someone on a vunerable platform, as well as placing the 'Lov-ee' on another vunerable platform.
LOVE.
I Love You.
During our insightful conversation, this avatar asked me, "What does saying 'I Love You' in SL mean?"
My mind went blank, but only for a mere moment.
I had always assumed that the words 'I Love You' would mean whatever it would mean to the person saying it and to the person receiving it. But in SL .. does it change?
The reason why this question was raised was because in SL, unlike RL, (or maybe MUCH like RL) promescuity can run amuck. I am not placing any negative connotations to the word 'promescuity' by any means. I simply chose to use that word for what it has come to mean in RL. Besides, I DID blog about Sex in Second Life being the Safest Sex Ever!
When someone says "I Love You" in RL and depending on where you stand in the morality/ethical scale, you may decide to conduct your actions in RL accordingly to not HURT the one that said, "I Love You" - although, I personally do not see why you would have to.
By saying 'I Love You' is only a mere verbal expression of an emotion felt by that person. It is their choice to have expressed it verbally, and it is their choice if they EXPECT a certain behaviour back from the person who received the "I Love You". In which case, I deem the Lov - er as SELFISH.
Love, believe it or not is a SELFLESS emotion / and should be a SELFLESS ACT. It should not come attached with rules and contracts and expectations. It should be, as we have heard countless times in our RL - UNCONDITIONAL.
Besides, there are so many reasons why someone would perceive that they FEEL LOVE towards a person. Many Reasons indeed. Some 'Love Emotions' are not even REAL but are rooted from some deep subconscious level in a person allowing them to perceive that it is REAL LOVE. And that my friends is where all trouble starts.
And I DO mean - ALL Trouble.
In order to KNOW what LOVE is and to fully understand its capacity you need to first understand YOUR SELF. You first need to accept YOUR SELF for who and what you are and from there develop a loving and trusting relationship with YOUR SELF and realize how SELF is very much a part of a GREATER ENTITY - That which IS LOVE.
If we are not aware that we are in fact 'energies' that are made up of LOVE and with LOVE then we are denying ourselves our basic RIGHT for a MEANINGFUL EXISTENCE.
Don't get me wrong. All forms of existence are meaningful .. but it would be that much more 'beautiful' if we were aware of it and not just go on living blindly.
If we cannot LOVE our SELVES then we cannot LOVE anyone else, for anyone else are mere mirror reflections of our SELVES, just in different images.
Just like the countless possibilities of creating alt avatars in SL, the person/mind behind each alt avatar is ONE.
We love them all the same for we created them equally from some likeness of our RL SELF despite each alt avatar having totally different lives and different personalities. They are all ONE - connected to the One person behind the image who sits at a computer screen manipulating their acts.
(Okay, this is all getting our of hand here and it just gave me an idea for another blog entry).
What does saying "I Love You" mean in SL?
The words "I Love You" mean exactly the same in SL as you would perceive it to mean in RL. It is subjective. It is REAL.
What does it mean for the receiver of the words "I Love You"? It would mean whatever the receiver perceives it to mean.
Communication people. Communication. If someone says "I Love You" both in SL and RL then it opens up another level of communication for growth, understanding and for a much more meaningful experience in whatever LIFE you are in.
Happy Loving!
"I Love You."
It had not occurred to me that this statement would and could take on a different dimension here in SL. Afterall, wouldn't it have the same meaning and implications and obligations it may have in RL?
Now think about it. Would it?
Granted, there are many ways in which the sentence "I Love You" can be said and taken to mean, depending on the context.
But no matter to what level one chooses to take their particular 'meaning' of the word/emotion "LOVE" - just the mere thought and acknowledgement of that word "LOVE" puts someone on a vunerable platform, as well as placing the 'Lov-ee' on another vunerable platform.
LOVE.
I Love You.
During our insightful conversation, this avatar asked me, "What does saying 'I Love You' in SL mean?"
My mind went blank, but only for a mere moment.
I had always assumed that the words 'I Love You' would mean whatever it would mean to the person saying it and to the person receiving it. But in SL .. does it change?
The reason why this question was raised was because in SL, unlike RL, (or maybe MUCH like RL) promescuity can run amuck. I am not placing any negative connotations to the word 'promescuity' by any means. I simply chose to use that word for what it has come to mean in RL. Besides, I DID blog about Sex in Second Life being the Safest Sex Ever!
When someone says "I Love You" in RL and depending on where you stand in the morality/ethical scale, you may decide to conduct your actions in RL accordingly to not HURT the one that said, "I Love You" - although, I personally do not see why you would have to.
By saying 'I Love You' is only a mere verbal expression of an emotion felt by that person. It is their choice to have expressed it verbally, and it is their choice if they EXPECT a certain behaviour back from the person who received the "I Love You". In which case, I deem the Lov - er as SELFISH.
Love, believe it or not is a SELFLESS emotion / and should be a SELFLESS ACT. It should not come attached with rules and contracts and expectations. It should be, as we have heard countless times in our RL - UNCONDITIONAL.
Besides, there are so many reasons why someone would perceive that they FEEL LOVE towards a person. Many Reasons indeed. Some 'Love Emotions' are not even REAL but are rooted from some deep subconscious level in a person allowing them to perceive that it is REAL LOVE. And that my friends is where all trouble starts.
And I DO mean - ALL Trouble.
In order to KNOW what LOVE is and to fully understand its capacity you need to first understand YOUR SELF. You first need to accept YOUR SELF for who and what you are and from there develop a loving and trusting relationship with YOUR SELF and realize how SELF is very much a part of a GREATER ENTITY - That which IS LOVE.
If we are not aware that we are in fact 'energies' that are made up of LOVE and with LOVE then we are denying ourselves our basic RIGHT for a MEANINGFUL EXISTENCE.
Don't get me wrong. All forms of existence are meaningful .. but it would be that much more 'beautiful' if we were aware of it and not just go on living blindly.
If we cannot LOVE our SELVES then we cannot LOVE anyone else, for anyone else are mere mirror reflections of our SELVES, just in different images.
Just like the countless possibilities of creating alt avatars in SL, the person/mind behind each alt avatar is ONE.
We love them all the same for we created them equally from some likeness of our RL SELF despite each alt avatar having totally different lives and different personalities. They are all ONE - connected to the One person behind the image who sits at a computer screen manipulating their acts.
(Okay, this is all getting our of hand here and it just gave me an idea for another blog entry).
What does saying "I Love You" mean in SL?
The words "I Love You" mean exactly the same in SL as you would perceive it to mean in RL. It is subjective. It is REAL.
What does it mean for the receiver of the words "I Love You"? It would mean whatever the receiver perceives it to mean.
Communication people. Communication. If someone says "I Love You" both in SL and RL then it opens up another level of communication for growth, understanding and for a much more meaningful experience in whatever LIFE you are in.
Happy Loving!
posted by Maxine Montale at 8:33 AM
2 Comments:
Great post Maxine,
One of my favorite books "Divine Secrets of the YaYa sisterhood" by Rebecca Wells has a passage talking about love that I really liked. It expresses perfectly the confusion I feel about love and how something that everyone needs to have in their life can cause so much pain. Here it is (approximately)
"Do you think think anything would ever get done in this world if people waited until they knew how to love? Only God knows how to love, the rest of us are only good actors. Forget love and try good manners!" I liked this. It calmed me down a little.. Because you are right that love is selfish. It's hard to find that unconditional love and I'm not sure it exists. I love your blog! Thank you for posting things that get me thinking!
Very insiteful! Love is all we have to give....and it's the only thing with which we can give and give more, and never run out.
I'm curious about you feeling on a love that exists in RL and SL simultaneously. Please visit my blog and tell me your feelings
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