And the only kind of love that they really have for other people is utilitarian love. You know, they just love people that they can use. ~ Martin Luther King, Jr.

Love is not love if it’s all about you,
if all your thoughts are what they can do
to make your life better, if you like it
when they look good only because
it makes you look good, and you see yourself
as deserving all the credit.
Love is not love when it’s about you.
Love gives without scorecards,
cares about feelings, comfort, happiness
of the other, knowing its own
is not from perceived personal needs met
but from the appreciation and joy of others.
Love is patient, love is kind.
It does not envy, it does not boast,
it is not proud. It does not dishonor others,
it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered,
it keeps no record of wrongs.
Love does not delight in evil
but rejoices with the truth.
It always protects, always trusts,
always hopes, always perseveres.*
Love is not love if it’s all about you.

*1 Cor. 13:4-7 (NIV)