Leaving the Cave

Leaving the Cave

As you go through life, meet people and have relationships, of course not every one will work out. There are those few who meet their one true love first time out, but for the rest of us, it takes a little practice. Often times we allow our feelings to get involved and often times they end up getting hurt. When this happens, there are as many different reactions to this hurt as there are people. For most, we eventually find a way to deal with it and move on. For some, they crawl into their cave, their emotional safe house. They find a place that’s safe, where they cannot be hurt again, and give themselves time to heal. The problem is some people never leave their cave. They are so afraid of being hurt again, that they would rather remain in their cave, untouched by those very emotions that brought them there.

While remaining in your cave is safe, usually comfortable, even predictable, it presents certain problems. The fact of the matter is, without coming out of your cave and risking getting hurt again, you can never truly be happy again. You miss out on the opportunities to feel and fall in love again as well as the thrill of infatuation. There is no room in the cave for the elation that comes with the first kiss, or the joy that comes from the long conversations that never get boring, and seem far too short. You deprive yourself of finding that one true love that most of search for, that person that we can happily grow old with.

Then there are the people that don’t realize that they still have their feelings safely tucked away in their cave and venture to start a new relationship. This can be very unfair and frustrating to the unsuspecting party. When starting a new relationship, one assumes that both parties are starting on equal footing and are ready to give their all to the prospect of the new relationship. As the relationship progresses and feelings start to grow, you expect that that growth is taking place for both parties, when suddenly you start to notice that the cave dweller is behaving differently. They are not as responsive to your touch, they are not as generous with their compliments and when asked how they feel about you, they don’t have a response. You think to yourself, “How can this be? We get along so well, we truly enjoy each other’s company and want the same things out of life.” The unsuspecting party now begins to realize that the cave dweller is withholding their feelings and pulling away from the relationship. The cave dweller comes to the realization that they have developed feelings for this person, i.e. they can now be hurt by this person. In a panic, they retreat with not so much as one word of explanation, leaving the unsuspecting party feeling confused and dejected.

So the question is, how do you leave the cave? In speaking with people about this topic, several fall back on the old adage, “time heals all wounds”. Others say the best way to forget about a man/woman is to go get another. Still others say they simply rely on their faith to see them through. They hold on to the belief that God does in fact have someone special in store for them, some one person placed on this earth to be their other half, to complete them even. The fact that the last relationship wasn’t that person doesn’t mean that they should give up on love and remain in their cave forever. It simply means that they either have not met the person yet, or it is not the right time yet. Either way, to stay in your cave would mean giving up on the possibility of love. And quite frankly, with the world as difficult to traverse as it is, why would anyone want to do that? So take heart, have faith, and you too can find your way, out of your cave.

Are you the Wind or the Wings?

Are you the Wings or the Wind?

 

In every relationship there is one person that is the wings of the relationship, and the partner that is the wind.  You all have heard the song made famous by Bette Midler on the soundtrack of the movie Beaches, “You Are the Wind Beneath My Wings”.  So true is this analogy in most relationships.  One partner is usually more outgoing, or possibly has the more distinguished or noticeable career.  While the other partner is content to stay in the background, providing support and being the wind necessary to enable the wings to take flight and soar.  And while the wings are who you see and take notice of, it is usually the wind that makes it all possible. 

Consider any politician that has had a successful career.  For that matter, consider any President that this United States has seen.  For every one, there has been a strong female standing by their side, supporting them, pushing them to achieve the greatness they know they are capable of.  Not only giving them the support they need, but also, taking care of things at home, so that the wings can focus their full attention on the tasks at hand.  Most successful men will quickly admit that they could not have achieved the things they did, had they not had their wife inspiring them and whispering in their ear, “Honey, I know you can do this.”

Look at any famous personality, whether it is in the sports world, in the entertainment arena or in the music world.  Most successful personalities have what some have called, that “strong backbone” at home holding everything together and putting the pieces in place.  Often times it is the man that stands out front, and the woman that is in the background, but not always.  It simply depends on the personalities, hopes, dreams and aspirations of the two parties involved. 

This being said, several questions come to mind.  Is it possible for two wings to work?  Through my experiences I have learned that if you live long enough you realize that pretty much anything is possible.  However, how successful a situation is truly depends on each party’s idea of what makes success.  While it’s true that there are couples that both have high powered jobs, what are they giving up in time spent together to maintain those jobs?  What happens when children are brought into the picture?  Often times it is this decision that determines who is truly the wings and who now becomes the wind. 

What happens when the wings and wind switch positions?  Can the wind step up and become wings?  Would they want to?  It happens all the time.  A couple has had distinct roles for most of the years of their marriage.  Each knows their jobs and has grown comfortable with their responsibilities in the marriage.  So what happens when, because of  illness, injury or divorce, the tables are suddenly turned?  How difficult is it to take on this new role and be successful at it?  Again, the answer lies in the person involved.  For some, they come to realize they were always wings underneath and had simply not had the opportunity to spread them and realize their potential in that capacity.  For others, it can be very difficult.  They can feel let down, overwhelmed, confused about their new responsibilities and can sometimes fall into depression at how their lives have changed. 

We all have some idea of how we would like, or even expect our lives to turn out.  We all know that although things may not be exactly like we’d envisioned, they will probably fall somewhere within a certain range of our expectations.  So how then do you deal with the realization that your life is not at all the way you thought it would be at that point in it.  Some cry, others scream, still others pray.  But for most, you wake up the next morning, and get about the business of living.  After all, what choice do you have?  You can’t shrivel up and die, although you may wish that that were a viable option at the time.  And most likely, there are others that still depend on you.  So you pull yourself up by your bootstraps and move on.  While this may not be an easy task, it is one that is doable, and you will find your way through it.