Feeling of love?

Question

Can someone relate / explain this to me?
When I was a "kid," I often felt that I was in "love," but in hindsight, I believe they were hormonal crushes. Now, in relationships, I don't feel I'm in "love," but rather I think, "do the qualities of this person satisfy my needs?"

Am I messed up? (rhetorical question). Jaded? Sometimes I feel I say "I can relate to you," just because it's a nice thing to say, not because I truly 100% emphathize with the person.

Answer 1

Love is wanting the other person to be happy.

Answer 2

When I was a 'kid' I did have some experience such as the ones you describe and I think that what we call "love" depends on how well two individuals are matched through personality, personal likes and dislikes, personal preferences. There is a saying that states "opposites attract" and I am not sure how that works into this explanation I have written, because perhaps a person needs a challenge to add interest to a relationship or it can become quite stagnant, but to have constant differences of opinion can be quite hard to handle also. I agree that qualities of a person satisfy needs, but because none of us are perfect, we have to know how to handle the adverse parts of a relationship to avoid trouble. I wonder if these words have confused or helped answer your question. As I am still confused.