Unconditional Love

As a would be father I am obviously ecstatically waiting for my little one.

Indian retrograde laws that prohibit revealing the sex of the baby,( aimed at nitwits who don't appreciate feminine progeny) have made sure that I am kept in suspense as to the sex of the baby. (By the way, I got to tell you that these kind of laws, though they vary in content from country to country, are still universal. But that is another topic for another day). Despite all this, I am thrilled thinking about the state of my little one in my wife's womb. I know this is fairly symptomatic of the state of mind of expecting fathers and mothers.

This got me thinking about the entire mechanics of love. Viewed objectively, it is odd that I should develop so much fondness for a child whom I know so little about. I don't know whether the baby would think the same way as I would want him or her to think. How will the baby look like? Everything is in suspense. But I still have this real overwhelming love waiting for the little one to come into this world. Isn't it inexplicable? How can you love someone without knowing anything about them? I guess this is the kind of love that falls under the banner of "Unconditional Love". The only other place where I see such love is in Indian movies where the idiotic hero falls head over heels in love with a gal whom he had just seen in passing.

Anyways, I wonder if this is the kind of love that would be required, to make any relationship work. Do I love my wife just because she happens to be my wife? Or do I impose pre-conditions for my love? I love her because she cooked dinner for me. I love her because she is so well read. Or because she is so pretty? I think at some point in time we need to ask ourselves this question about most people around us.

One of my theories is that I love someone unconditionally if they are not around me. After all like someone said "Distance is a great promoter of admiration". This is especially true for relatives. You love them when they are not around you. The moment you see them, you want them to leave! So from all this, I am jumping to the possibly precipitate conclusion that we love anything unconditional if it stays conceptual. I love my brother since he is my brother. The moment I see him, I want him to alter all kinds of behavior. (Won't you stop chomping your food etc.)

Now I know why God does not show himself (or herself) to us. We love God so long as they are conceptual as the benevolent father (or mother) of the Universe. The moment they show up, we are busy judging them. Do you really have to don that kind of apparel, God? Can't you speak colloquial language like the rest of us? ...

I think I understand the world a little bit better now.