I recently broke up with the woman who inspired me to start blogging. She ran a blog and her creativity inspired me to give it a go.

Although I was the one to break it off, she still lingers in my mind. It feels weird to not have that person to talk to throughout the day. I wrote something today while bored out of my mind and listening to a lecture on the Russian war in Afghanistan and its comparison to Americans in Vietnam. (That would inspire any writer, right?)

I'm still questioning whether or not I made the right choice when I wrote this.

Relationships are hard. They involve communication, openness, love, and affection, which are powerful elements that aid in bonding two people.

Cutting ties is always difficult. When leaving the person who you bonded with, emotions stir and boil over. You face eruptions of anger, sadness, and hurt. All of it spills over and flows like tears that stream down your face.

People come into your life for a reason, leaving a mark on your soul and steering you in different directions. Sometimes, they push and pull you and help you to be your best you. They compliment you and you compliment them.

These people are the stepping stones to the relationship that you are meant for. They teach you things to prepare you for the next relationship, if there is one.

For instance, my first taught me how to act in a relationship. The words: "I love you," are immensely powerful and that they should not be used frivolously. My second taught me how a relationship can be based on friendship and sexual drive, but not necessarily love. My third taught me that you should never settle and that, when you do, you're cheating yourself out of something good and keeping someone selfishly.

My fourth, though, taught me what it was like to truly feel loved outside of the people who you relate to, outside of frivolous and stupid teenage love. I reveled in her companionship, learned the joy of sex, and that you can feel one thing one moment and then have it change through the fog of war (fighting). She taught me that you can lose them. I miss her and, yet, I don't at the same time.

After three days, I'm left wondering whether or not I made a mistake or if I learned all that I could. I don't regret any of my relationships, they all taught me something and each has helped me to be a better person.

While some may see their exes in a harsh light, I see them as people who taught me something that I needed to learn in order to help me with whatever comes next.