I didn't contribute to the previous love discussion 2.5 months ago. I didn't want to think about love then, and I didn't even want to read the postings about it. It must be a seasonal thing. So here we are again, and here's my nickel's worth (they are discontinuing the penny in Canada).
thenewgreen will miss his dog like crazy when it predeceases him...but his grief will be mediated by his gratefulness for all the ears of dogpalsmanship.
If you've had at least one big, crazy, wrong-headed passion that doesn't end in broken glass, then it's been a good run.You can be as broad or as specific as you want.
I will be broad here, gordonz88.
You will get over all the pain of love. Later on you won't believe how stupid in love you were: the obsession, the stalking, the longing.
And later, when you are over it, you'll be so glad that it all went down.
Somewhere down the line, when you are over it, you will kind of miss it, be glad you went through it, and vow to be smarter about it next time. Maybe you will be smarter, maybe just luckier.
You will learn to protect your heart; then you will realize that you have to leave it open and vulnerable if you are going to have a life at all.
You'll dive in again, and be hurt again - but you'll be certain this time that you will recover and recovery will come sooner (or later).
(Leonard Cohen, "The Future") I've seen the nations rise and fall
Heard their stories, heard them all -
But love's the only engine of survival -