I was never that girl who dreamed of her wedding -- planning every detail, picking out colors and eyeing dresses in shop windows. I have, however, always loved love. I never harbored bitterness for other couples when I found myself single on Valentine's day. Happy couples make me beam. 

I'm that creepy girl in the corner, staring (with happiness and fascination) a little too long as they laugh together while buying groceries, exchange a knowing glance across a crowded room, or gaze lovingly into the others eyes as they hold each other on a train platform. 

And it's not just romantic love. I love love in any of its forms. Last week, as I stood in the security line at the airport, I noticed 3 men weeping as they walked their friend through the stanchions and hugged him goodbye, for what must have been a very long time. Tears streaming down his face, the departing friend couldn't bring himself to look back after he'd hugged them goodbye. It was a beautiful display of the pain, and the joy, of love. 

I think few would disagree that love, and meaningful connection with other human beings, is what makes life worth living. 

The world is our playground. Love makes it spin. Here are the stories...