protect that heart

"To love at all is to be vulnerable. Love anything, and your heart will certainly be wrung and possibly be broken. If you want to make sure of keeping it intact, you must give your heart to no one, not even to an animal. Wrap it carefully round with hobbies and little luxuries; avoid all entanglements; lock it up safe in the casket or coffin of your selfishness. But in that casket — safe, dark, motionless, airless — it will change. It will not be broken; it will become unbreakable, impenetrable, irredeemable." ~C. S. Lewis

Wow. Let me try to gather myself as I try to explain this quote and what it means to me. (Sorry if this is super emotional and deep) 
When you love someone or something, you're putting all your trust and belief in that person/object. C.S. Lewis really couldn't have said it in any simpler way... "To love at all is to be vulnerable." Thats exactly how it is. Whether loving a family member or significant other, the reality is is that people fail. We are sinful beings that will always disappoint. Loving really IS putting yourself at risk. You're opening your heart. Lewis recommends to completely guard your heart. He suggests spending your time, effort, and love into things you enjoy and care about. To be quite honest, I am quite in love with volleyball and chipotle. Putting that aside, I really think that what Lewis is trying to get at is that you really have to learn to love yourself before you love other people. You have to find yourself. Know what you're good at and what you enjoy. Try different things. Be content with where you're at. Really explore yourself and broaden your horizons. Once you're sure of yourself and love who you really are, you're able to approach loving other people with more understanding and caution. Don't be naive. Dont be vulnerable. Treat yo'self. Love you for who you are.