A long term relationship can be a numbed out meaningless experience that gets int the way of your life goals and wastes your valuable time on Earth, or it can be something that gives your life meaning and richness. This goes for all relationships, not just the romantic variety.
You get to choose how you spend your time.
Many of us approach relationships with so many fears. Fear of eventual loss of the relationship, fear of the unknown, fear of being vulnerable and fully seen, fear of being judged, fear of our love not being reciprocated. So we stop ourselves from treading into the deep end of the pool where we fully trust in the relationship, surrender and unmask ourselves.
The thing is, you’ll never experience deep love and connection in the shallow end of the pool. But we remain there because it seems safer. We feel we can’t afford to risk being that vulnerable.
Unfortunately, pain is inevitable.
But it is survivable.
Plus, it’s painful either way. If we don’t open up fully, it hurts because we never feel deeply connected, we feel unseen, unappreciated, alone, misunderstood, we wonder if our love is reciprocated. We risk loss of the relationship or feeling like we are always at arm’s length because of this lack of depth.
If we are brave enough to open our hearts fully, we stand to gain deep connection but also eventually painful loss. The unfortunate reality is that all relationships eventually end one way or another.
Pain is inevitable, suffering is optional.
Deep interpersonal connections determine our life satisfaction and longevity. They are what we most remember in our final moments. They help strengthen our immune systems and reduce our chances of many serious illnesses.
Maybe we can’t afford not to take a chance and open our hearts. You can dive in with even a small gesture like sending someone you care about a personal meaningful message today.