Being Needed Is Not the Same as Being Loved

There's a seductive comfort in being needed. It feels like security -- they can't leave because they need me. But need is not love; it's dependency. If someone stays because they can't manage without you, the foundation is fragile. The moment they learn to stand on their own, the reason to stay disappears. Real love is someone choosing to be with you not because they'd fall apart otherwise, but because your presence makes their already whole life better.