Love is a slow process that requires ample amounts of patience and requires a constant effort for it to work. We all want a relationship like the ones we see on television or in movies like the notebook. In fact, we want it so badly, that we are brainwashed into adopting the things we see in romantic films and shows as our expectation as to what love is. We day dream of literally running into the perfect person, picking up napkins at the same time or any other common theme portrayed in today’s media. In all honesty, it beckons the question of what is love really? I am happy to share what I feel to be prerequisites that are commonly overlooked in the process of the "perfect love". Some ethos to live by are that love takes patience, realism, honesty and above all trust. First, patience is a virtue that can be applied to all aspects of life. It's a well-known understanding that anything worthwhile takes time. In all honesty, we come from a generation that has been programed to get what you want now. For example, take the supplement industry that advertises getting instant results by flooding your body with products that make your lose weights. Which it could prove to be harmful in the long run. In addition to risking our health, we have a tendency to risk our hearts for what we want. Rome wasn't built in a day and neither will a love that will last. Second, we need to be realistic about love as a whole. In all honesty, what makes you think the world consist of men with bodies like Channing Tatum, or like Denzel Washington and money like Bill Gates? The world consist of normal people who are as human as they can possibly be. The knight in shining armor or the perfect princess doesn't truly exist. If you yourself aren't perfect then why would you expect someone else to be? Third, we need to be honest. Honesty applies to our standards and ourselves. We cannot expect honesty from other if we aren't true to ourselves. Furthermore, by being