By Ann Luongo
Content Writer, Marketing & Philanthropy

In honor of Valentine’s Day, I Googled “quotes about love” to find a little something to start off this month’s blog. That was an enormous mistake.

The return brought an astronomically long list of search results, including Love Quotes for Him; Love Quotes for Her; Love Quotes for Mom; Sad Love Quotes; Happy Love Quotes; Short Love Quotes; Love Yourself Quotes; and the list went on and on.

There are many kinds of love – romantic love, the love we have for family and friends, the love we feel for animals, nature and the like, etc., and so much more. To put it simply, to love is to give of one’s self with no expectation of receiving anything in return.

There is also the love we feel for humanity. This can be a tough one these days, I know, when you read about all the negative and awful things some humans are capable of in the news. But, the fact is, humanity as a whole can be truly wonderful, full of kindness, caring and generosity.

Loving humanity is the core mission of philanthropy. According to the National Endowment for the Humanities, “the word philanthropy comes from two Greek words – ‘philein,’ meaning to love, and ‘anthropos’ (as in anthropology), meaning humankind.” Thus, philanthropy means “love of humanity.”

It’s through this love of humanity that those who have the capacity and ability to help others, do. Philanthropy and that special love of humankind is what keeps organizations like ours going. We depend on it to continue our mission to be able to serve those who rely on us.

Love is something that we can practice in many of its forms each and every day – not just once a year when the candy and card aisles go all red in February. Help someone if you can. Hug a friend. Listen to someone who needs it. Tell someone how much they mean to you. Be kind. Be generous. Give where you can.

Love, after all, is what makes the world go ‘round, as they say.

One of my personal favorites is a quote from the Chinese philosopher, Lao Tzu. He said, “Being deeply loved by someone gives you strength, while loving someone deeply gives you courage.”

Indeed, it does.