Today's society is so packed full of girl power, with inspirational quotes, reminders to love yourself, know your worth, and to never settle. And I 100% agree with all of it. There is nothing more important than knowing who you are as an individual before you enter a relationship. Knowing your worth is so valuable, and something that we should always be reminding our fellow ladies of.
Of course, never settle. If you know in your heart you are not being treated right, LEAVE NOW. And don't look back. There is nothing that hurts my heart more than hearing about a friend stuck in the cycle of a bad relationship (because been there done that, and I wouldn't wish it on anyone).
But there is a line between being constantly mistreated and a simple mistake. Sometimes we are too quick to tell a friend to move on and find better.
Not a single person is perfect. And what doesn't help a relationship is sharing every detail of every fight with your BFF and to only hear "drop him". Of course, your friend doesn't mean harm and just wants you to know that you deserve all the happiness in the world, but let's be realistic here.
You'll fight about little things, and you'll fight about big things. He'll let you down, and you'll let him down. But that doesn't mean you need to give up and throw everything away immediately. Because news flash, you'll be searching for "the one" for a long time if you do, and you'll be constantly disappointed.
Just because you found the man of your dreams, doesn't mean it's always going to be sunshine and rainbows. It might be hard, like really really hard. Because you're both human, and you're both going to screw up sometimes. Okay, maybe all the time. And you're going to need to make a conscious choice to keep fighting for your love.
In a society so focused on being treated with the utmost respect, we've forgotten what it means to have forgiveness.
Instead of dropping someone because of a flaw, why don't we love them harder? Why don't we help them back on their feet, and walk through the struggles with them? Why don't we show unconditional love and have mercy on them because oh my goodness we probably make just as many mistakes ourselves?
Stop pointing your finger and start holding out your hand.
Instead of immediately thinking "Ugh drop him you can do so much better", try "Love him and forgive him". Lift the relationship up and cheer for it to succeed instead of discouraging it. Practice patience when you're frustrated, and have empathy when you want to be angry.
And just as you should never forget your worth, never forget your partners worth either. They are just as deserving of forgiveness and love as you are, so remind yourself of that. Point out their positives instead of their negatives, and remember that you are flawed too. Don't be so quick to judge, because there have probably been a few times when some of his friends could have said "Drop her" about you, too. So pray for a love worth fighting for, then love unconditionally and forgive endlessly. Because imperfect love is the most authentic love out there and is the only love that exists.
