Love Will Find You

If you've been reading my blog up to this far, or just now popping in, I've been talking about love and everything I know about the idea. I don't necessarily know much about how to deal with every specific relationship, but I do know I have been through a couple of weird relationships myself. However, throughout all of my relationships, I am glad to tell you that the only way that my current relationship is still healthy today is based off of learning from my past experiences.

I learned that you can't be afraid of love nor can you just jump at it from the slightest attention. Let me tell you about my first boyfriend. He was the first person to ever ask me out, so I just said yes. The relationship lasted nine months. Of course, we realized that we weren't meant for each other because when he said "I love you," not too long after being together, I couldn't reciprocate the same feelings.  The relationship just did not feel right. After that relationship, I knew I had to get the next one right, or at least be sure I wanted to be in a relationship.

Ever since my first relationship, I learned about relationships over the course of five years. Online dating shouldn't consume you. Dating someone without fully knowing them can have scary consequences. Being afraid to make a relationship work from going to different schools should not be a problem. Being the emotional type of person, I got attached to easily, fell too hard, and tried to fix everything even when the relationship was not getting anywhere.

Then the time came for my freshman year of college. Moving to a new city, I wanted to start anew and not worry about relationships. Luckily, love found me. At first, I was hesitant with giving my all to someone, getting to know someone, letting my barriers down, and falling for a guy I never expected to fall for. I was scared of love because I thought things would be just like my past relationships. Turns out, this guy was a complete gentleman and was exactly what I never thought I would find. Being so cautious made me afraid to love, but I eventually gave in because I aimed with my heart, not my mind. Now look where I am today. This weekend is our two year anniversary and I'm excited more than ever to have gotten this far with the best guy in the world. Maybe next time I'll tell you more about my relationship. Remember to always aim with your heart.

Pictures (from top to bottom):
http://emotionspn.blogspot.com/2011/02/i-am-afraid-of-love.html
http://www.thekevinmitchell4.com/blog/happy-valentines-day/jump-for-love/
http://www.searchquotes.com/quotation/I_have_a_habit_of_falling_too_hard_and_falling_too_fast,_and_getting_my_hopes_up_for_somethng_that_w/333201/

The Love Cycle

Relationships.

Sometimes you go looking for someone to love, but sometimes love comes looking for you.

Dating. Whether or not you are looking for love, you always begin by talking to someone and getting to know that person. Even if you aren't completely interested at first, you go through a talking stage to open up to each other and break down the barriers set up from any previous relationships or notions about relationships. This is usually known as the dating stage, where you aren't exclusive but you are working your way towards commitment.



Commitment. You start to feel that the person you have been dating is the only person you want to be with. They make you happy and you feel like you don't want to see anyone else. You want to claim that person as officially yours and you make every effort to put their wants first. During this stage you become exclusive and you make the commitment to each other where no one else is involved.

Honeymoon stage. During the honeymoon stage, you feel like nothing could go wrong and you guys are happily together. Everything seems to be going smoothly and the relationship seems to perfect. As an item, both partners become more intimate with each other and share their lives together. This could be the time you begin living with each other or the beginning of a marriage where things seem like they just keep getting better and better. This happens until the relationship doesn't seem to be so perfect anymore.

Conflict. After the honeymoon stage, a couple may experience the difficulties of the relationship. Someone's true side may come out and there may be struggles between thoughts. The partners may begin disagreeing or butting heads. Not everyone is going to have the same view on everything, so the two may eventually realize that the person they fell for isn't the same as they used to be in the beginning of the relationship.

Break-Up or Proposal.There are usually two paths that relationships go through when entering conflict. Either the couple breaks up and parts ways or they compromise and find ways to fix the problems in their relationship. Ending the relationship and going different ways is always an option for those who do not feel happy and are dissatisfied with the relationship. Eventually, they will just try again and start over with someone new. However, if the couple chooses not to break up, then they usually try to make things work and compromise to make things better.

Although my relationship hasn't been at the same pace as this cycle, my relationship may have at one point touched each and every stage above. Every relationship is different, but I'd like to tell you my story. Tune in next week to hear all about my relationship and what I've been through.

Pictures:

http://www.hercampus.com/love/dating-hooking/more-friendship-less-relationship-youre-flirtationship
http://gagthat.com/tag/in-love/
http://www.womansday.com.au/lifestyle/relationships/2011/8/relationship-conflict-does-not-change-throughout-marriage-says-study/
http://www.getdomesticviolencehelp.com/domesticviolencecycle.html
http://www.agirlsworld.com/proposal-tips-for-boys-from-a-girl/