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Thursday, June 30, 2011

OMFG - Make it work.

As a fan of Project Runway, I always loved it when Tim Gunn arched those perfectly groomed eyebrows of his and advised the contestants to "Make it work.". I always wondered how that phrase applied not only to television but to relationships as well, especially in our youth. How much work should we dedicate to making something that isn't working, work?
I'm sure as you get older, making relationships work is a little easier of a choice. After you've been with someone  for a certain amount of time and have experienced what you wanted to in life, finding  a lover or companion to spend the relaxing years of your life with is a no-brainer. But what about when you're in your twenties, at the top of your game, and with the world at your fingertips? Not as easy. I can speak honestly for most twenty-somethings out there when I say we're all selfish little brats looking out for number one. The usual train of thought that goes through our pretty heads when it comes to evaluating a relationship is along the lines of "Will they hold me back?" "Will I find some one better?" "Can I commit to one person when I can't even handle my own affairs?" "Is this love???" Oh, the amount of uncertainty that clouds the brain of a twenty-something is literally mind-boggling.
That's why the number of unstable, off and on, kinda-sorta and maybe relationships (for lack of a better, or less concrete word), during these years is so high. To commit to another person when you can barely commit to yourself seems almost impossible. Usually it just seems easier to let go and move on than to stick around and try and make it work. After all, why should we put so much effort into fixing something that's seemingly broken when something, or some one, better could easily come along? Well call me crazy, but I'm going to pull the love card here.
For all the headache and heartbreak we put ourselves through during the years of partying, traveling and general recklessness, once in a blue moon you find some one who just might end up being worth the effort. I once heard that there are no "maybe" feelings when it comes to love; that when you know, you know. Even some one as hopelessly romantic as me can say that sure, when you're in love you know it, but defining love is something else entirely. So how do you know you're in something you can't even define? Oh, there's no need to get all emo here, but suffice to say it's difficult. I've been through several maudlin moments thus far in my life where the definition of what love is has modified itself significantly. Is loving some one letting them go live their life to the fullest and knowing destiny will bring you back together? Or is it being together no matter how difficult? I can't say for certain, but I know for me, at this very moment, it is, like Tim Gunn says, making it work.
Life in our youth is ridiculous enough as it is without love, or something like it, being added to the mix...but what's a little more craziness on top of an already hectic life? Maybe at this age you never really know what's for certain in another person, but what we do know is when it feels worth it, it usually is.
x

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