Time passes, but love remains

Once, those who are now old were young… Once, those who stood beside us were here, but now they live only in our memories. As time moves forward, everything changes. Faces fade, voices soften, and distances grow. Yet one thing never truly leaves us: Love. Because love is the only thing that even time cannot erase.

When we were children, we thought the hands that held us were unbreakable. The hands that lifted us when we fell, that brushed through our hair, that guided us as we learnt to walk… They were always there, always strong. Our father’s voice, our mother’s warm smile, the presence of our elders—these were constants in our world. We never thought they would one day be gone. We never imagined a world without them.

But life has its own way of teaching us.

One morning, we woke up and noticed that those hands were no longer as strong as they used to be. Their steps became slower, their voices softer. The laughter that once filled the air turned into long silences. And then, one day, the moment we feared the most arrived. We reached for those hands, but they were no longer there. We waited for that voice, but it never came. Their presence turned into photographs; their chair sat empty at the table. The echoes of their voices became whispers from the past.

Time, how cruel it is. Just yesterday, they were here with us, resting their head on our shoulder, calling our name. Now, they are only memories. To see them again, we have to close our eyes. To hear them, we have to listen to the wind, hoping it carries a trace of their voice. But no matter how much time takes away, it can never steal what they left behind: Love. Because love does not belong to the body, it belongs to the soul.

Sometimes, we found them in a song. Sometimes, in the scent of morning coffee. Sometimes, while walking down a familiar street, remembering how they once held our hand. They were no longer before our eyes, but they were alive—within us, in our memories, in the deepest part of our hearts. And that’s when we understood: The people we love never truly leave us. They continue to exist in the places time cannot reach.

And yet, some moments still weighed heavy on our hearts. “I should have hugged them more, we thought. “I should have spent more time with them. I should have told them how much I loved them.” But time never waits. And once it moves forward, all that remains are the regrets of words left unsaid, of moments lost forever. Because no regret is heavier than knowing you had love to give, but you held it back.

One day, we too will become memories. One day, we will be the ones who were once here, then gone. Someone will look at our photographs, trying to remember our voice. One morning, they will wake up and realise that we are no longer there. And they too will ask themselves, "Did I show them enough love?”

But no matter how much time it takes, no matter how the world moves on, one truth will never change: Love remains. Because some love does not fade into the earth. It rises into the sky, it lingers in the wind, it lives on in a song, in the corner of a photograph, in the memory of a smile.

And when we close our eyes, we will feel it once more…
Those hands are still on our shoulders; that voice still echoes inside us.
Love never disappears.
Because love defies time.

With Love and Respect,

Burak Anaturk.

Burak Anaturk is a professional civil engineer. He focuses on sharing lessons from his life experiences, exploring diverse perspectives, and discussing personal development topics.
Email:burakanaturk@gmail.com