Something I have learned over my life, especially in the past year, is that sometimes love means letting go. Growing up, I think we all have this image of what "love" is supposed to be. It is the unconditional love you feel for your favorite stuffed animal that you snuggle with every night, your favorite game you play with your best friends at recess, and when your mom lays down with you at night and rubs your hair until you fall asleep. As time goes on and we grow up, the things we love change into our first family dog, our first boyfriend, and coming home from college to see our parents. People tell you your whole life that falling in love is the greatest thing that can happen to you, but what they don't tell you is how much letting go of something you love hurts.
Letting go of some things are much less painful than others, like not being the only child anymore (which is probably the only thing I ever loved that I was okay with losing), outgrowing your favorite pair of shoes, and school ending for the summer. I wish everything was as simple as giving up these things. I am here to tell you what others did not tell me, that losing a love is NOT easy. Letting go of your first boyfriend, horrible or great as it may have been, takes forever to get over. If you went through anything like I did, getting over your second boyfriend who proved to you the kind of the love you want and deserve, is even harder. Seeing your best friend move hundreds of miles away, to make a new life without you, you’re talking about some serious separation issues and missing someone more than you ever thought possible. Most recently I have learned that the hardest thing to do is letting go of someone who walked into your life on 4 legs. They may cry at 7:00 am, eat some of the styrofoam off your parent's garage door (sorry Mom and Dad), and shed everywhere all the time, but the way they wag their tail when they see you, cry at the door when you leave, and sit in your lap- even though they weigh 80 pounds- makes all the negatives melt away.
Whatever or whomever you let into your heart, just know that letting them go is one of the hardest things you will ever do. But if it gives them their best chance for the greatest life possible then that is what truly matters. When people tell you that falling in love is one of the greatest gifts in this life, they are right. Learning to love someone with your whole heart, flaws and all, is amazing. Author Melissa Marr once said, "Sometimes love means letting go when you want to hold on tighter." So no matter what or who you choose to love in this lifetime, love them wholeheartedly, regardless of how long you have together. Because the memory of that love and knowing you did what was best for them will forever outweigh the memory of the pain of letting them go.
