Just A Thought (What Was It?):

There is a significant difference between "love and lust," "commitment and convenience," and "attention and intention." But these days, most people have the lines blurred. All three circumstances cause confusion because we either didn't pay attention, or deception was the plan all along. I speak about various scenarios every week, but for those of you who think you're exempt, let me break it down for you: If the man we loved failed to acknowledge the relationship we shared, it wasn’t love. #ItWasThere. If the man we loved was married to someone else while attempting to “love” us, it wasn’t love.#ItWasSelfish. If we were married to someone else while attempting to “love” him, it wasn’t love. #ItWasAnEscape. If we decided to readily sacrifice our relationship for the sake of sex with someone else, it wasn’t love. But#ItWasDisrespectful. If our love had limits (and you know what I mean), it wasn’t love. #ItWasReplaceable. If he abandoned us when we were grieving or vulnerable, it wasn’t love. #HeAintShit! If he ran away every time things got hard, only to return when things got easier, it wasn’t love.#ItWasConvenient. If he ever made us feel less than we were because he thought very little of himself, it wasn’t love. #ItWasImmature. And if he was “roommates” with his ex and only had time to see us on the first and third Wednesday of the month (and sometimes on Sundays), it wasn’t love.#ItWasDishonest. Real love, ladies, has no reason to hide or keep secrets, pretend or deny its connection—it just doesn’t. So if at any point, you had to lie or sneak to be together, it wasn’t real love, because real love is never closeted or dishonest; it's claimed. 

-Kanika A. Vann
Author, Love: Possible