Summer Valentines (Which suck more than February Valentines)

Summer seems to inspire a lot of new romances and "love." It may be a teenager thing, but I do not think so. Couples of all ages seem to appear. Summer romances come around simply because people want to go out in the nice weather and get out in general and they do not want to do this alone. Along with this seasonal comaderie comes the bombardment of people asking for advice. The thing I seem to notice most is that people confuse infatuation with love (I throw lust in with infatuation, though they are not the same thing). Meeting a new person that you have an attraction to is exciting and, if the attraction is strong enough, it can be overwhelming. People are confused by this. They think "I get along with this person so well and we are so alike and we have great chemistry and I feel so comfortable around them and they are so perfect and..." All this is peachy and of importance when first meeting or first getting to know one another, but it is a lie. Once someone REALLY gets to know them then, if they still see this but add to their list of ands "I see their imperfections and I love them because of them" then there is something true in this. The problem is that people do not take time to discover whether or not it is really love, because they assume this first infatuation is love. And everyone is always in such a hurry to find their true love and live happily ever after that they don't just let things happen. These things just simply cannot be rushed. There are those cases where people meet and get married in one weekend and have a happy fifty-year marriage, but these are pretty rare. Instead, it usually ends up like a Hollywood marriage. I guess I do not understand this incessant need to find the perfect person and be with them NOW. People are afraid of being alone I guess. But if they would just slow down and not look at every person as a potential mate, they may actually find that person. If people would just let things happen and run the natural course, something great could be produced. I'm not saying do not try to make relationships work or do not look, just do not try so hard that you cannot see anything but yourself. And all these young people, especially you people right around my age, stop thinking everyone you meet is your "one true love." And yes, I realize that young love can "be true." I know plenty of couples that met when one or both were very young and have been together for twenty or more years. And honestly age does not mean a whole lot in my mind (to a certain degree: people need to be legal and there is a point where it gets a little gross), but at the same time I think the younger set is a bit zealous and excited so can more frequently misinterpret new feelings. The older set can be overcautious and dismiss feelings. But it is easy to find people acting the complete opposite than these two broad and insubstantial-yet-slightly-true sets dictate. A little less annoying than the people who fall in love instantly are the people who never fall in love. I am a bit more sympathetic with these people. They are not as obviously heartbroken and not as blatantly or dramatically upset as the people who lose their loves quite frequently, they are lonely and scared, which can be far worse as it those are deep and long feelings. They are afraid of being hurt. Or they have high expectations that people just cannot live up too. Or they feel that they do not deserve the person they find. These people let intimidation and fear blind them from something potentially great. I guess it all comes down to people need to slow down, relax, and see beyond their expectations and dreams, and just let things happen as they will.