Relationships: Are You Ready for Romance?
Romance, we all crave it! Love is one of the most fulfilling aspects of being human. There are four relationships that most people interact with daily- we have familial relationships, friends, co-workers, and our romantic partner. Each of these relationships has certain categories and subcategories that need to be met in order to be successful. For the sake of this post, we are going to focus on the romantic relationship. The ideal romantic relationship consists of three essential categories: physical, love, and friendship.
The romantic relationship
The physical relationship sub categories consist of desire, attraction, and eroticsm. Love consists of passion, intimacy, and commitment. Friendship consists of empathy, trust, and is eternal. It takes all three categories to have a successful romantic relationship. Movies and media seem to either over complicate or over simplify a healthy, romantic relationship. Typically, one essential category is missing. Movies tend to lean in on the physical aspect of a relationship and under emphasize the importance of friendship or love.
For example, we have all seen a movie where a guy and girl are friends. Girl lusts after a guy but the guy lusts after another girl. After many scenes full of disappointment he eventually realizes that he actually does love his friend and they walk into the sunset. As cinematic as this movie comes across, it is excluding the physical category.
The other movie we have all seen is the one where the “loser” (but lovable guy) lusts over the beautiful, popular girl. After a crazy turn of events he impresses the girl and she falls in love with him. This relationship excludes the essential friendship category. The last movie people may relate to is friends with benefits. In this movie the friends trust each other enough to engage in sex without the commitment or “love”. As appealing as this relationship is to some people, it usually has an expiration date.
Not to say all three of these scenarios can’t end in a happy long term relationship. It's just not as easy as TV and movies make it seem.
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Long-lasting romance
How does a couple cultivate a relationship that has all three components?
Here are three steps to make the long-haul easier:
Step one: Spend time together. “Go on dates.” Start to feel comfortable with each other. This is when you learn each other's likes and dislikes. This is also when you create a friendship and is the building block for step two.
Step Two: Get to know each other. Once comfortable spending time together, start talking more deeply about yourself and get to know them on a deeper level also. Though all relationships start differently, this step also helps in developing the “love” category.
Step Three: Build trust. Trust is the most important part in a romantic relationship. Trust Takes Time, but is a necessary part if there is going to be a long term relationship. It's also very important when things get more physical. Sex can be the greatest form of trust, It is when we are the most vulnerable, and when couples start to really open up with each other. “Pillow Talk '' is a real thing and a huge part in a Romantic Relationship.
Starting a romantic relationship can be scary but it can be extremely rewarding. All relationships take a lot of work and none are perfect. However the hard times make the good times all the more amazing.