Category : Diary/Journal

Sub Category : N/A

Respect is more than passing pleasantries, more than nice words. It takes effort to look at the other and take in to consideration of who they are and show them you regard their point of view with compassion and seriousness. It is listening without judgement, getting to know them with few assumptions as possible. It is in careful understanding conveyed by empathetic words and deeds to show the depth of feeling you hold for them. In this way respect is foundational for trust,  just in the same way that trust is foundational for true love.
We need to live a life that is more than a "dance of behaviors"- you do this and so I do that. I can't spend my life exchanging good deeds for good deeds in return like a couple of traders with wares to sell. I can't respect that. With love we just give without reserve, never keeping score of any "balance" owed. In this love I give you the benefit of a doubt always, the soft side of my nature, until you bite me with disrespect. Then I retract, wounded, and uncertain of my next move. It isn't prudent to have such vulnerableness with one so prone to strike the underbelly, regardless of feelings of love - then it is time to respect the self and reassess. It just puts us back to square one - respect. 
I have to see you respect me again before we move back to trust, and then to a position of safety where I can show real love. It's silly. Just talk to me, I don't always listen.