List for a Future Me IV: Relationship Priorities from a Wanderlusting Fool
They say that just over the next hill, lies paradise. But me? I've got paradise right here in my pack. The rest of it? Scenery.
-Put aside the fear part, and the logic part. I'm happy right now, and that's OK.
-Do you want it? Get it. Do you still want it? Keep it. Life is too long that you should be tossing aside beautiful experiences in mad pursuit of greater sensations. Does not such haste cheapen and corrupt your feelings? Be patient, stand firm, and remain faithful. Only if you would want it to be forever finished does it become even acceptable to consider an end.
-Dating isn't about love.
-Dating is about commitment. Binding yourself to another, and them to you, for mutual gain is the fundamental basis for most social arrangements, and dating is no exception. While typically tied to emotional stimuli, they are not integrally linked (though their synergy improves the experience). Date when it satisfies, when being with this person mutually improves your lives (but never use another person, for such belies only your own weakness. Mutual gain is superior gain).
-Romance isn't about dating.
-Romance is about love. Love's nature is ineffable, but suffice it to say that not only am I a believer, I would go so far as to claim it is the most sublime and sweetly feeling experiences allowed mankind. But it is a thing independent, as free and wild as any product of the heart. It comes to us unbidden, fulfilling us, pushing us to new heights. There is no better word for it, because it doesn't fit into a word in the first place.
-Love isn't about emotion.
-Love is about the heart. It does not speak logic, and shouldn't be expected to. Practice the utmost patience with your own heart and those around you. Be careful, but always turn the other cheek. We are frail and fragile gods, but kindness makes us stronger.
-Put aside the fear part, and the logic part. I'm happy right now, and that's OK.
-Do you want it? Get it. Do you still want it? Keep it. Life is too long that you should be tossing aside beautiful experiences in mad pursuit of greater sensations. Does not such haste cheapen and corrupt your feelings? Be patient, stand firm, and remain faithful. Only if you would want it to be forever finished does it become even acceptable to consider an end.
-Dating isn't about love.
-Dating is about commitment. Binding yourself to another, and them to you, for mutual gain is the fundamental basis for most social arrangements, and dating is no exception. While typically tied to emotional stimuli, they are not integrally linked (though their synergy improves the experience). Date when it satisfies, when being with this person mutually improves your lives (but never use another person, for such belies only your own weakness. Mutual gain is superior gain).
-Romance isn't about dating.
-Romance is about love. Love's nature is ineffable, but suffice it to say that not only am I a believer, I would go so far as to claim it is the most sublime and sweetly feeling experiences allowed mankind. But it is a thing independent, as free and wild as any product of the heart. It comes to us unbidden, fulfilling us, pushing us to new heights. There is no better word for it, because it doesn't fit into a word in the first place.
-Love isn't about emotion.
-Love is about the heart. It does not speak logic, and shouldn't be expected to. Practice the utmost patience with your own heart and those around you. Be careful, but always turn the other cheek. We are frail and fragile gods, but kindness makes us stronger.