It’s human nature to want to be invincible. To feel strong in a way that vacuum-seals you from any pain or suffering. To feel that you cannot be conquered, and that you will prevail. If we didn’t feel this so deeply, superheroes would be far less popular than they are.

And, to be fair, we’re often far less greedy about it. We don’t even need to feel invincible; we’d settle for just feeling okay. Feeling safe. Feeling secure enough in this one moment.

We should be allowed to feel that. Everyone in the world should feel that. Most days I don’t know what to do with the place of deep sadness within me that knows it should be that way, and how very much it isn’t.

But I do know this: love, in its most potent form, in its most transformative power, is not invincible in the way I wish it was. It’s not superhero invincible, or bullet-proof invincible, or even bubble-wrap invincible. Love is the strength that comes when you release your need for all of that impossible protection.

The truth is, we live in a fragile world in fragile bodies. The truth is, much of life will be difficult, and heartbreaking, and we can’t control most of it. Hiding from this doesn’t make it any less true.

There’s a story in the gospels about Jesus telling his disciples that he’s going to suffer and die. One of them, Peter, rejects this outright and rebukes Jesus. It’s the saddest story, because it’s just so very human. Peter wants to protect Jesus, which is so kind. He loves him. But also, Peter wants so badly to protect himself. He doesn’t want to see Jesus suffer and die. He doesn’t want to be without him. But Jesus always chose love over protection. This is what Peter didn’t yet understand.

Spiritual heroes like Jesus and Gandhi and Nelson Mandela and the Buddha show us what it means to draw your power not from a desire to be above or outside human suffering but to be true to the power of love right in the middle of it. It is the opposite of invincible, but it is the most powerful force in the universe.

The power of love is not an invincible power. It is a vulnerable power. It is the kind of power that is brave enough to be present to the world–the suffering, the joy, the inexplicable mystery of it all.

It can feel so scary to shed even just one piece of our invincibility armor. We did so much to create it. We have put so much stock in it. We have so much riding on it.

It helps to realize it’s not real, anyway.

But love is.

Love is the most real and lasting thing there is.

May we find one tiny, tiny way to be brave enough today to love the world boldly as the beautiful, fragile humans we are.