As human beings, we can often be stricken by moments. As a younger child, I knew I was one of those girls who could easily fall in love with a charming cashier or barista. Obviously not actually fall in love, but for me, and many other young humans, it was just a part of my childhood to be a little naïve for charming and handsome men. Young adolescent love is normal, cute and innocent. But as we grow up, those same moments we once had when we were younger can change to infatuation, and those once innocent thoughts can lead to something more.
It’s wonderful to fall in love with moments. Sometimes the moment is so simple and peaceful that you can’t help but appreciate it for the simplicity it has to offer. And sometimes the moments you fall in love with are chaotic and exhilarating; a taste of something a little crazier than what you’re used to. When we fall in love with moments, we may make the mistake in thinking that we could possibly fall in love with the person associated with that moment.
When you start to think you’re falling in love with a person within a loved moment, you actually fall for how you make the person out to be. From what we already know of the person, we allow our imagination to go as far as to create the being into your liking, and from there, “falling” for that person, when in reality, you’re just in love with the moment. Because we associate people so closely with memorable moments, we may make this mistake of thinking that we’re in love with the person rather than the moment. Recreating scenarios with how we think they would react leads us to imagining more moments that will never happen, and we continue to fall for the way we want these people to act.
I feel like I can talk about this because I’m guilty of this rather indulging behavior. It’s not necessarily bad to do so -- it’s only human for our subconscious to be so creative, but it can hurt us in the end. We imagine someone impossible not to adore because that's what we want, and with our expectations so high and will so strong, we can be hurt when reality strikes, telling us that the imagination was a fantasy; something not real.
In order to avoid this, you just need to take a step back. Next time you think you can fall in love with a person, think of why you are feeling this way. Is it because it’s the person, or are you associating the person with a memorable moment? Distinguish the difference between loving a person and loving a moment. Don’t make this mistake.
Learn to distinguish the difference between loving a person and loving a moment; a life long lesson we should all learn to master.
