Ruminating with Rumi
Consider love as it appears in existence. You may find love with someone. You may give yourself fully to another. But love in existence has expectations which come from our desire for loving relationships. Desire holds expectations for gaining attention, acceptance, and affection. The need for these expectations is part of the human condition. Without them the me of the body can wither and even die.
Love with expectations can bind you in a way that chokes the joy out of life. Some feel rage and a desire to run when they have accepted love at all costs. They wish to leave the relationship and be done with it. The hurt is heavy. It is too much of a burden to carry. Love becomes confusing as it runs amok with fear. Thorns get in the way of the roses.
What am I trying to say? That love coated in fear sucks. It sucks a person dry and spits them out. But still, you cannot let go. You dare not forsake love, to leave it in the dust by the side of the road. The me of the body clings to love at all costs. It can die without love yet fears it. For when love is lost, you can spin out of control. Many survive by hiding their love under a rock and walking away, hoping to retrieve it when they are ready. If this is you, you know it is there, but the pressing weight is heavy. With love hidden you grow feeble, and the rock becomes too heavy to move. But love does not vanish.
The short of it is this. The rock is fear, and fear can be overcome by being its witness. Observe fear without accepting it as you. You are love without fear, and love without fear is joy. Joy is your true nature. Live in joy and you will know love without desire and attachment. Without desire and attachment, you can give love freely. Love given freely brings joy to life.