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If I speak in the tongues of men and of angels [If I speak with great eloquence and persuasion, if I am the funniest person in the world and can make anyone laugh, if I am so witty as to be able to come up with comebacks for everything one could say and one-up them] but have not love, I am a noisy gong or a clanging cymbal.

And if I have prophetic powers, and understand all mysteries and all knowledge [If I am so intelligent as to comprehend all things, to do and write everything with such impeccable quality, and even be creative enough to think of ideas and invent things others have not thought of before],

and if I have all faith, so as to remove mountains [I am so intelligent, popular, persuasive, beautiful, driven, and lucky that I may do all things, that everything may go my way and I can always have what I want whenever I want, and get others to marvel at the amazing things I have done] but have not love, I am nothing.

If I give away all I have, and if I deliver up my body to be burned [If I serve until I cannot serve anymore so others can see how loving I am, if I push myself to the limits to impress others, if I am so busy and important as to sacrifice all my time to doing], but have not love, I gain nothing.

If I do all these things but have not love, and do not know how to love, I really have nothing, not one of the things that I pursued and always received. I have really achieved nothing, I have nothing, and I really am nothing.

Love is patient and kind [love is caring and willing to wait according to another’s needs];

love does not envy or boast [love isn’t jealous of others and lustful of what others have, and does not broadcast and proclaim what you have yourself in order to reinforce whatever identity, worth, praise, or love you are trying to garner];

it is not arrogant or rude [love doesn’t think itself to be better or more important than others and is not always preoccupied with oneself. love is also considerate of others, considering how things look and feel like from another’s point of view and acting to bring care, understanding, and light into that].

It does not insist on its own way [love is not self-seeking, it does not insist on having things go in your favor or according to your plans, your wants or your needs. love is not reflexive, it does not mean self-love];

it is not irritable or resentful [love doesn’t get annoyed at others, it doesn’t become irritated or frustrated because another person is not acting according to what pleases you or according to your needs or according to your comfort. it also does not hold anger or frustration towards other people inside and use that as a reason to judge or harbor bad feelings towards them];

it does not rejoice at wrongdoing, but rejoices with the truth [love doesn’t rejoice, does not conform to and does not accept what is wrong, broken, or evil, even if it is easier to believe. Instead, love rejoices when the truth rings out, when people do what is true, believe what is true, and become living embodiments of that truth themselves, even if it is harder to do].

Love bears all things [love carries all cares and woes, allows and rejoices for others to cast their burdens and cares onto],

believes all things [has faith and believes in the good even if you cannot see it, even if it is easier to succumb to cynicism or despair],

hopes all things [there is never a pit too deep to fall into, never a problem or wound too grave to fix, never a person too hardened or broken to heal, but there is always hope even when it doesn’t seem like there is],

endures all things [perseveres. in order to win, to succeed, to give, to receive. perseveres throughout all. never ceasing, never quitting, but persevering].

Love never ends [it is never removed from you, you can never do anything to remove yourself from it. it will never cease or die. it has been and will always be, forever.]

(from sheandhercat)

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I want to know what it is to be Loved and love others in the Truest sense; all else is meaningless

you loved me in my darkest, you held me up.
if you loved me in my darkest, and died for me then
surely your deed—and your love—is still efficacious, even through the dark now