not all loving is love

your way of love may not mean love to others,

it may not be the way people want to be loved

I moved this poor tiny succulent to the window to spare it some natural light.
Later, I was told that it's actually a fake plant made of rubber. Haha.

It looks too real to be fake. The plant maker did a great job on this.
Though its weight could have given the clue away, I spared it some benefit of doubts because all I had in mind was to shower it with sunlight.

Now that the truth has uncovered, I still left it by the window because there's where all plants should be (real or fake) - exposed to natural light.

This reminds me of how in life, we tend to show care/love the way we like to or the way we think others might like to be cared for/loved, without considering if it actually hits the right spot.

If it does, both parties are happy.

What if it doesn't?

The receiver feels it's unnecessary.
The giver feels taken for granted.

The receiver feels annoyed.
The giver thinks the receiver isn't appreciative.

The receiver feels constrained.
The giver feels lost.

It's all due to poor understanding of each other's needs/don't-needs and wants/don't-wants.

If the giver and receiver both see care/love from their own perspective only, the over-showering of care/love is effortful but meaningless.

For the giver to note:

Not all care is caring.
Not all caring is care.
Not all love is loving.
Not all loving is love.

For the receiver to note:

Not all neglect is uncaring.
Not all uncaring is neglect.
Not all ignorance is unloving.
Not all unloving is ignorance.

Hope this post rings a bell to random people out there who happen to read it.

Also hope I haven't annoyed my loved ones with 'unnecessary' love.
If I did, do let me know before I accuse you of being ungrateful and unappreciative.

For now, all I could do for this succulent is to wipe dusts off it every other week, which is the only care it needs from me. The sunlight might actually kill it since it's made of rubber - but I still like it by the window. Hehe.