“Passion, Love, and the World Our Children Are Growing Up In”

Passion. It’s the fire that fuels love, the heartbeat of relationships, the spark that makes us feel alive. But in today’s world, passion doesn’t always grow from the right places. It’s not whispered under starlit skies or written into folded letters passed between hands. Instead, it’s filtered through phone screens, distorted by algorithms, and consumed through unhealthy media.

As someone who has lived through messy love, heartbreak, and mistakes I wish I hadn’t made, I think often about what passion means now — especially for young people. Because what they’re learning about love today is not what love truly is.

The Social Media Effect

When we were teenagers, passion was shy and clumsy. Holding hands in public felt like the boldest thing in the world. Now, social media has made everything faster, louder, and more exposed. Teenagers are comparing their relationships not to reality, but to Instagram couples who look perfect, TikTok influencers who choreograph their romances for views, or celebrities who flaunt passion like a brand.

The problem? That kind of passion is staged. It’s curated. It’s not about real connection but about image. And young people, especially teenagers, often can’t see the difference. They think love is about big declarations online, matching outfits, or dramatic gestures. When, in reality, true passion lives in the quiet — in the late-night talks, in someone remembering your favorite snack, in the warmth of being understood.

Pornography: The Silent Destroyer

Another truth we don’t like to talk about: pornography. It’s everywhere. Free, accessible, and sadly normalized, especially for teenagers. But pornography doesn’t teach love. It doesn’t teach intimacy. It teaches performance, dominance, unrealistic bodies, and expectations that no real relationship can fulfill.

I’ve seen it hurt relationships firsthand. Friends who admitted they couldn’t feel connected to their partners anymore because their minds were filled with images that had nothing to do with love. Teenagers confused, even ashamed, because what they were experiencing in real life didn’t match what they saw on screens.

Pornography creates a dangerous cycle: it promises passion, but it delivers emptiness. It tricks young minds into thinking love is physical only, when real passion is so much deeper — it’s emotional, spiritual, connective. And yet, it’s “trending.” It’s a conversation happening in schools, in friend groups, in whispers. The very thing that damages self-esteem and twists love is being consumed like entertainment.

Teen Love and Hormones

I remember being a teenager — everything felt so intense, so dramatic, so life-or-death. A crush wasn’t just a crush, it was the one. A breakup wasn’t just sad, it felt like the end of the world. Hormones make passion burn brighter but also make it more unstable.

Teenagers think they know everything about love, but in truth, they’re just beginning to learn. The problem is, they don’t want to hear guidance. They think advice from parents is old-fashioned or controlling. And yet, the lack of guidance often pushes them into mistakes — unhealthy relationships, heartbreaks that scar deeply, or even abuse they don’t recognize until years later.

When I look at today’s teens, I see myself in them. Chasing people who weren’t good for me. Believing love was about pain and struggle. Thinking I had to accept toxic energy because it was “passion.” It wasn’t passion — it was insecurity disguised as love.

The Need for Guidance

This is where we, as parents, step in. Even if our kids roll their eyes, even if they slam their doors, even if they pretend they don’t hear us. They need guidance. They need honesty. They need someone to tell them what love really is — not social media’s version, not pornography’s version, not their friends’ exaggerated version.

Real passion is not destructive. It doesn’t leave you empty. It builds you up, it makes you feel safe, it helps you grow. And if I can teach my children that — if I can give them the wisdom I didn’t have — maybe they won’t have to repeat my mistakes.

The Mistakes I Don’t Want Them to Repeat

I chased toxic people. I mistook control for love, manipulation for passion, cruelty for care. I embarrassed myself for people who never deserved me. And it took years to unlearn those patterns, years to heal from those wounds.

I don’t want that for my children. I don’t want them to confuse lust with love, drama with passion, or pain with devotion. I want them to know their worth, to understand that healthy love should feel like peace, not like chaos.

So even if they hate it, even if they don’t want to listen, I’ll be there. Talking to them about respect, about patience, about how passion and love can exist without toxicity.

Examples From the World Around Us

Look at the media. So many celebrity couples glorify drama — breakups, reconciliations, public fights, cheating scandals. It’s consumed like entertainment, but it teaches kids that this chaos is “normal.”

Then there are the quieter stories. Couples married for decades, whose passion never faded — not because they had some Hollywood romance, but because they built their love on respect, forgiveness, and kindness. Those stories rarely go viral, but they’re the ones I want my children to see.

My Promise as a Parent

I can’t control the world my children grow up in. I can’t take away every harmful influence. But I can be the voice they hear at home. I can show them love through example — how I treat my husband, how I set boundaries, how I respect myself. I can be the safe place they come back to when the world confuses them.

Because passion should be beautiful. It should be about growth, about connection, about building something lasting. And I’ll fight to make sure my children know that.

Final Thought

Love is messy, passion is complicated, and growing up in today’s world makes it even harder. But it doesn’t have to destroy our kids. With guidance, honesty, and patience, we can help them understand what love really is.

So yes, passion is powerful — but only when it’s rooted in truth, respect, and care. And I promise to guide my children toward that kind of passion, the kind that builds them up instead of tearing them apart.

Because they deserve better. And so did I.

✨ Passion isn’t in the likes, the filters, or the trends. It’s in the quiet love that makes you feel safe — and I’ll make sure my children know that.