I don't understand the what the big deal about the "L" word is. Why are there all of these rules about when and how to say it and where did they come from? Why is it so taboo to simply express what you're feeling towards a person. There's not debate about how and when and where and why to say "I hate you," so why is the positive of that so stress-inducing?

I have heard innumerable laws and rules of thumb and advice and words of wisdom on this topic - to the point of absurdity. There's arbitrary dates and assumed knowledge and stereotypes and the singularity of a relationship is almost never taken into account. "Wait, 6 months, then you know it's safe to say it because they've stuck around for that long." "If he hasn't said it, he's not feeling it." "The woman should never be the first to say it." "If a girl says it before a guy and he's not ready, he'll freak out and leave her." "Men are afraid of the phrase 'I love you.'" Where does this come from?! People who have been rejected in the past and therefore assume that their case is the rule? You care very deeply about a person, so you tell them that. If they don't feel that yet or at all then you take it in and move on. It should make the object of affections feel good, not freaked out. There is so much unnecessary pressure around these three words that it just adds stress to relationships and may even ruin them in the end. If you love someone, it shouldn't be a matter of them "sticking around." You should want them to know that you have this incredible feeling for them because you see them as special and wonderful in your life.

And what makes this paranoia even more absurd is that fairly often it's obvious when someone loves you. It's innate for you to feel it. Sometimes, there isn't even a need for words and yet it has to be said aloud and in compliance with all of society's ridiculousness. Love isn't just something that's said, it's shown - so what out! You may have already been exposed.

I'm not stating that some of the above proverbs aren't true. There are people whose natural reaction to unreciprocated expressed feelings is panic and those people need to relax and act like a rational being. In that situation, my reaction would be "I'm sorry. You know that I like you very much but I'm not sure that I'm ready to make that commitment yet or I'm not sure that I'm there yet and I want to make sure that I'm ready and committed to stating that. I want to be with you and I want to see where this goes. When I'm ready, I'll say it." Revolutionary, yes?

It just never ceases to amaze me how hysteria can blow things out of proportion and interfere with the most intimate aspects of people's lives.