This is from my new novel, I Wish to Say Lovely Things. You can get a copy here.
Love is the best gift you can give, and whether you mean to or not, you will give back to yourself in the act of giving. The action of loving self-propagates. It gives you fuel while giving the same to others. The love I speak of is the kind of love when you give everything away—where you spend yourself like a pile of cash you’ve fought all week to earn and in your emptiness you are unexpectedly rich. Love will empty your bank account and you will realize it wasn’t a bank account to begin with, and you will see that when you love truly you cannot drain your reserves because in the charity of love your reserves are boundless. You will love your friend and your love will raise you back up as you start to fall down. You will love a stranger and the grace, compassion, and beneficence of this act will keep the planet in motion. You will love your lover and in that sanctity your days will be like years and your years will be lifetimes. Love will consume you and you will be safe inside this love and anything that wants to get at you will have to get through love first. You will be armored against the arrows singing through the trees by unknown archers. You will stand tall with the strength of legions at your back and no wind will push you down. Love will just eat you alive, and I hope you will let it.