Empires have fallen because of it. Wars have been fought over it. The pain of losing it has led to substance abuse. It’s often been a motive for murder.

Yet, some people are fortunate to have it for a lifetime. Others only experience it inside a fantasy or through the words of a song. There are those who refuse to take a bite of its fruit for fear the sweet taste will soon turn sour.

Its regret is spoken from the deathbed. The dying won’t utter, “I should have bought the Ford and not the Chevy” or “I should have worked overtime and made more money.” Instead, in the midst of a final breath, one will cry out, “I should have said those three words you always wanted to hear.”

It’s a waste of time for Jack, but a constant obsession for Jill. Poems make you cry about it. Movies make you sigh about it.

It cannot be defined with logic and science can’t explain how its power can tame the beast.

It can heal the sick and comfort the lonely. It’s a promise sealed with a kiss at the altar, but after too many hurtful arguments, the same lips spit words of hate and leave a family in ruin.

Women seem to talk about it more than men do. Missing it, children can grow up lacking conscience and compassion.

Sometimes, you don’t realize that it’s right in front of you. Other times, your mind deceives you into believing that it is.

When you get the chance to grab its prize, you throw all your chips on the table because you know the jackpot can reward you with years of happy tomorrows and that’s better than anything else that would be worth your gamble.

Yes! You can climb mountains and swim across oceans. If it lives inside your heart, nothing is impossible.

It only lasts forever when it’s unconditional. It fails without forgiveness. Struggle can make it stronger. It carries a death sentence upon conviction of unfaithfulness. It’s an exchange of lies during a one-night stand. The selfless always win at its game and the selfish always lose.

It’s born with your head in the clouds, but it grows with your feet on the ground.

It’s real on Monday mornings, not so much on the 14th of February.

It’s ageless, timeless and deathless.

It can save the world or destroy it just the same. It knows no gender, no race and no religion. It’s praised by God and damned by Satan.

Its beauty lies in the soul and not on the skin. Better to wish for it upon a star than to search for it in a bar. It disappoints with unmet expectation. Respect and trust are a must for it to survive. It thrives when there is an absence of judgment.

It nurtures self-esteem. It brings peace of mind. It can even make food taste better. It goes great with a glass of wine and it loves to shine its light by candles and firesides.

The other day a song from the ’60s found my ears, one I never particularly liked then, but it came back to me at the right time and in the right place. It reveals the essence of the subject of this column. I revised some of the lyrics to make the words more personal in meaning.

The song is “Elusive Butterfly” by Bob Lind.

We might wake up some morning

To the sound of something moving past our window in the wind

And if we’re quick enough to rise

We’ll catch a fleeting glimpse of a fading shadow

Out on the new horizon

We may see the floating motion of a distant pair of wings

And if the sleep has left our ears

We might hear our own footsteps running through an open meadow

Don’t be concerned

It will not harm us

We are just pursuing something we’re not sure of

Across our dreams with nets of wonder

We chase the bright elusive butterfly of love

We might have heard footsteps

Echo softly in the distance through the canyons of our minds

We might have called each other’s names

As we ran searching after something to believe in

Every day we keep on running

Through the long-abandoned ruins of the dreams we left behind

We remember something there that stayed a while

Then glided past us,

Followed close

By our heavy breathing

Don’t be concerned,

It will not harm us

We are just pursuing something we’re not sure of

Across our dreams with nets of wonder

We chase the bright elusive butterfly of love

One day we’ll reach our nets out farther

And capture the dancing spirit in the wind

Elusive no more

The monarch will stay with us to rest

Within that extraordinary moment,

Our hearts will beat with a delicious joy

To a song sung by the angels above

But when the moment is gone,

It will flutter its wings

And rise to catch a sudden breeze

And once again

We chase the bright elusive butterfly of love.

Rich Strack can be reached at katehep11@gmail.com.