Season, a reason or a lifetime?

Not sure who coined this phrase and not sure why it isn't more commonly referred to. There is a lot of fixation on finding a soul mate, "the one" or just being paired up in general. It's pretty much a societal imperative that we should pair off and this can put a lot of pressure on dating scenarios. A lot of us avoid holidays and family in general because of the inevitable and often uncomfortable inquiry into our romantic lives. The beloved Bridget Jones Diary movie did a brilliant job of portraying such a setting: Bridget shows up to a dinner party only to be ambushed by a veritable couple tribunal... every single person's worst nightmare. Even if we're content on our own and/or wanting to be certain before committing long term, we can be left feeling somewhat disturbed because many people assume we're not happy or we're not "whole" unless we have a partner. Is anyone brave enough to inquire into the marriages/relationships of these concerned parties? Are they truly fulfilled or is their relationship long since dead and they're just telling themselves that at least they're not alone? ... just curious;) Either way, as we all know, love is not something we can conjure up. It just happens one day... and if we're in a rush, odds are we're going to wake up after the honeymoon's worn off and realize something's just not right and now we have to go through the pain of unraveling everything. Not fun. So what to do?

A season, a reason or a lifetime is a great notion because it lets us off the hook. If we keep this thought in mind, we can take the pressure off our next blind date, first date, current squeeze or ongoing boyfriend/girlfriend. We can take our time and really consider how things are going. If we keep trying to make each person the "right one' all the time, we may not be noticing when they're not a match. Think of how much more fun dating could be with no pressure. If we're in the moment and enjoying each date, or the dynamics of our relationship, we may just notice all of the great things we like and the things that are not so much. Either way, hopefully we've had a lot more fun and frolic along the way and end up with some quality information about ourselves; what we like, don't like, can live with, can't live without etc. More fun, less pressure, better result? Sounds good to me;)

Blessings,

Chatgirl