Take your time and don't walk blindly into love
Modern methods can lure us into forming a rapid romance
Be wary of love when it makes you do something you think is dangerous or out of character.February was the season of love. Flowers changed to a vibrant red, match-making shows, dramas and movies about love filled the screens and many longed for their partners to say "I will always love you".
Yet, just three days before Valentine's Day, on February 11, Whitney Houston - the woman who made the song I Will Always Love You her signature - left her fans.
Houston had the fame, fortune and talent many long for. But her self-destructive behaviour eventually overshadowed her music.
She admitted her marriage was the tipping point for her slide into drug use. Because of her love for her husband, she agreed to take drugs with him and went through all sorts of physical and emotional ravages. Behind her megastar success, she had intense pain in her turbulent marriage. She once questioned herself: "Is this love? What is this? What am I into?"
Yes, love can be blind. Therefore, it is imperative to think carefully before entering a relationship.
But it is easy to find our commonsense overcome by the quest for love. Speed-dating services and one-day-only partner services for Valentine's Day are becoming more common. They may be considered helpful to singles in this busy city, but they are commercial businesses.
They are aimed at the culture of instant gratification, and promoting an unhealthy way of starting relationships. This is unfair and irresponsible to both parties.
The media and businesses also use love as a tool for promotion. They imply their products are an important element of love, creating fantasies that include romance. People become blinded by this and turn to these products to find ways to echo their own fantasies.
A healthy love life requires a balance between sense and sensibility. Be selective and patient. It is better to go without than have something shoddy.
While Houston struggled through her darkest hours, one person still loved her ...her mum. It was this love that kept her alive.
At times, children may not understand their parents, finding them ridiculous or outdated. Sometimes they may think they hate them and argue. But try to understand them and respect their unconditional love.
Houston's I Will Always Love You will continue to remind generations to come of the importance of being loved, loving healthily and appreciating love.