COMMITMENT

" Passion is the quickest to develop, and the quickest to fade. Intimacy develops more slowly, and commitment more gradually still. "- Robert Sternberg

" One of the truest tests of integrity is its blunt refusal to be compromised"-Chinua Achebe

" If you don't make a total commitment to whatever you're doing, then you start looking to bail out the first time the boat starts leaking. It's tough enough getting that boat to shore with everybody rowing, let alone when a guy stands up and starts putting his life jacket on." - Lou Holtz

"The risk of love is loss, and the price of loss is grief - But the pain of grief Is only a shadow When compared with the pain Of never risking love." Hilary Stanton Zunin


All of this quotes I find to be very true. In a committed relationship it will take work to keep the passion going. It's like a garden in which we need to sow in seeds of love, forgiveness, etc.. A garden needs to be tilled and weeded just like a relationship does. We can become upset when one person isn't doing any work to keep the relationship going. In today's society I feel more and more people are walking away from their commitment, and usually it becomes okay when we blame our partner for what they aren't doing. Sometimes one person may feel like they have to do all the work, and certainly there are times it will be that way. Nothing worth keeping is easy. Only you can decide if your commitment is worth keeping. Can passion be rekindled in a relationship? I believe it can. I know people who have walked through fire and their marriages weren't always easy who have gotten through the tunnel and saved their relationships so ANYTHING is possible. It really depends on the individuals and how much their commitment means to them. It's not always easy, but it can be done.

Often we forget no one is perfect and everyone makes mistakes. We hold our mates to unrealistic expectations in which the relationship is doomed to fail right from the start if you expect your mate to be a mind reader and to know your every whim. Let's face it, Cinderella is a fairytale. A more realistic version would be Cinderella getting a broom out and wanting to knock Prince Charming over the head when he didn't meet her needs or he said something he shouldn't have and hurt her feelings. Then she goes and talks to all her fairy friends with a "You won't believe what he did now..." while Prince Charming feels like he just can't make her happy no matter how hard he tries. The thing is he stops trying to please her when he feels she doesn't appreciate anything he has done. Because all he hears in his ears are the put downs instead of any praise. So becareful of what you sow with your words into the relationship. Praise your partner even if you have to dig deep to find the praise. Your partner wants to be lifted up not knocked down. He or she can learn from you. For those of you who are saying "Oh I am NOT going to do ONE more nice thing because..." I can tell you I do KNOW how you feel, and I have been there. Yet I made a commitment and MY word should mean something regardless of how many times my partner let me down.

So to turn a relationship around we have to sow the praise, love, respect and forgive our partner for the mistakes. I believe it's a matter of taking responsibility for our own part in the relationship since it does take two. Take a look at where you began and how you acted, and then take a look at where you are today. What's changed? I really beleive with love ALL things are possible and with a deep commitment you don't just hold the other person accountable, but you also take a look at yourself. Are you putting passion into the relationship? What have you been investing? Keep the faith!

Being in a relationship makes us vulnerable. It takes a man of great courage to risk it all with the belief that good will come. I have looked at life as it's better to risk, than to be an old woman wishing I had. It's better to be the best I can be, and if I should fail.... try, try again! If I don't believe in myself, who will? This is something to ponder today.

Wishing you the very best,
Ann


“Love comes to those who still hope even though they've been disappointed, to those who still believe even though they've been betrayed, to those who still love even though they've been hurt before.”

The Scripts- BREAK EVEN....I LOVE THIS SONG!!! AND THE IRISH BAND!!!