"Every time we make the decision to love someone, we open ourselves up to great suffering, because those we most love cause us not only great joy but also great pain. The greatest pain comes from leaving. When the child leaves home, when the husband or wife leaved for long periods of time or for good, when the beloved friend departs to another country… the pain of leaving can tear us apart.
Still if we want to avoid the suffering of leaving, we will never experience the joy of loving. And love is stronger than fear, life stronger than death, and hope stronger than despair. We have to trust that the risk of loving is always worth taking."
Henri J.M. Nouwen, Bread for the Journey
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