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| Chains and padlocks are displayed at the railings of the bridge in Pont de L'archeveche, Paris. |
I chanced upon this bridge when I was
strolling with friends in the city of Paris. It is popularly-known as the
Lovers’ Bridge where a multitude of padlocks of different sizes, styles and
shapes was attached to the metal railings of the bridge. For lovers who pledged
their love to each other, the padlocks symbolized their eternal and everlasting
love. Throwing the keys to the river Seine after represented the unbreakable
bond between them.
But is this really what true love
means? Can a padlock embody love? If taking its figurative sense, does undying
love entail one to be endlessly devoted to someone? Does it also mean that love
is too powerful to be broken?
I don’t believe so. A very
special friend told me this sometime ago: Love is one great adventure. You’ll never
know how it starts or how it ends. You have no control of the other person
because to love someone is to love the freedom he or she possesses as an
individual.
As for me, I don’t set out in
this world to seek love that I locked up. I am constantly smitten by people who
love their individuality: those people who love themselves first and most. These
are individuals who know what they want and know how to get it, those who speak
their minds, those who influence and make change, those who confront challenges
and realities. They have their own dreams, hopes and aspirations and they keep
on moving day by day to make these happen. I love them because they are the
ones who inspire me to open my mind, boost my capacity to learn and encourage
loving myself more so that I could love others freely.
As love is an adventure, one must
also be confident in his or her capability to cope with its twists and turns,
ups and downs and the whole 360-degree pivots and dangerous backflips. One of
my favourite authors, Paulo Coelho wrote, “Love is an untamed force. When we
try to control it, it destroys us. When we try to imprison it, it enslaves us.
When we try to understand it, it leaves us feeling lost and confused.” Therefore,
we must be able to embrace love in all its fragility and its constant risks.
And above all, we must understand that at the heart of loving is freedom; the
liberty to be ourselves.
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| A father and his daughter checks out the various styles, shapes and sizes of the padlocks at the Lover's Bridge. |
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