At the end of my freshman year, a person I held in high regard and considered a close friend uttered the eleven words that would forever be etched into my brain:

"I think you cut people out of your life too easily."

I remember sitting in the passenger seat of the car, watching the road disappear under the hood as we drove in aimless circles. Did I really just cut people out of my life? I had always considered myself to be a fairly clingy person with my relationships, romantic or platonic. I never enjoyed people leaving me, but then again, who does?

He took my silence as an indication to continue and he proceeded to explain to me that I should learn how to forgive and forget. As I sat there, I thought about the relationship I had ended a month or so earlier and began to doubt my actions. What if I had been too quick to break it off?

Then, all of the horrible memories of that relationship came swarming back:

Yelling at each other for hours over the phone.

Passive aggressive text messages.

Skype "dates" that ended in one of us crying (it was a long distance relationship).

Ignoring each other for hours on end, just to get a rise out of the other.

The care packages that signaled the end and beginning of an emotionally abusive cycle.

...In short, the relationship was a complete nightmare. We were complete nightmares for each other.

As my friend dropped me off in front of my dorm, he told me, "I guess I just love people too much to let them go." Complete honesty: it took a lot of effort not to slam his car door.

OK, Corinne. Cool story, but get to the point.

This is my point: learn when to fight for a relationship and learn when to let go.

By letting go, I mean cut that person out of your life. Do not stalk them on social media (or in real life) and do not "accidentally" walk by their 9:30 am English class.

Does it sound harsh? Oh, absolutely. But it's for the best. Sometimes people will enter your life and they will become the sun and moon in your sky. This can be good or this can be bad. This can make it hard to let go if the relationship turns sour. I'm not only talking about a romantic relationship here people, I'm also talking about a friendship. Today's culture focuses heavily on romantic relationships, seeming to forget that there are other types of relationships. Friendships can go bad. Friendships can be become abusive and one-sided. If this is the case, what do you do?

End it. Don't end it in fire, burning every single bridge as you leave; if later down the road (and by later, I mean at the very, very, least half a year), that person realizes that their mistake and apologizes, consider becoming their friend again. Will the bond ever be the same? No, probably not — and that's how it goes. But it could bring about a sense of closure for the two of you. Everyone is different.

Basically, what I'm trying to say is that I am sick of people hurting people. I'm fed up with people allowing others to hurt them. I understand that each situation is different, but if you have officially ended a relationship and continue to keep in contact with them, it's time to stop. Stop talking to them, stop following them on social media, stop making them relevant in your life. If the relationship causes more tears and pain than laughter and love, something is wrong.

You have power to do this. You are in control of you. You want to move on? Cut. Them. Out.

Listen, if time passes, I'm talking like six to nine months minimum here, and the sight of their face doesn't make you want to cry or punch them, then consider opening up communications. However, if you have to dissect your interaction with this person with your best friend or your roommate, you aren't over the relationship. One of my favorite bands, The Lumineers, states an incredibly profound idea in their song, "Stubborn Love:"

"The opposite of love is indifference."

Until you're indifferent to this person, cut them out. You want to move on from a bad relationship? Cut them out. It's horrible, it's horrible, and it hurts. And a lot of the times life will seem very bleak and miserable. But I promise it gets better.

"So keep your head up, keep your love

Keep your head up, my love

Keep your head up, keep your love"