The end goal of a serious relationship is generally thought to be marriage. Which makes sense: Why be committed to one person if you don’t hope to marry your partner one day?

So, is it really realistic for teenagers in high school to invest their time in a long-term relationship? I don’t think most high school students are mature enough to give their whole self to a person when they haven’t even fully discovered who they are or who they want to be. Students have so many other things to focus on: finding yourself, figuring out your future, getting good grades, getting into college and the list goes on. A relationship just seems like a diversion of the things that really matter.

The kids that do involve themselves with someone else usually don’t last. Sad, but true. It’s a false hope to think everyone marries their high school sweetheart, although it does happen once and a while. When that relationship ends, your world shatters. You put everything aside and prioritize a person who, in the end, doesn’t even stay. And we all know, the first cut is the deepest. That heartbreak will crush you like no other. Makes you wonder why should I even bother?

Then one day, someone new will come along. This person could end up just another mistake, they’ll leave and it’ll hurt all over again, but, you wont be as devastated. Thanks to that first heartbreak that once crushed your world—you’re now stronger than ever. You’ll bounce back quicker than before.

If that new person is your person, then thank your first heartbreak again. Thank them for screwing up so you could find the person you will spend the rest of your life with. Thank them for teaching you how to love so you could love that person with your whole heart. Thank them for teaching you what you won’t tolerate in a relationship. And thank them for showing you what other people won’t tolerate in a relationship. Now you know exactly how to show your love to your soul mate and make it last ‘till kingdom come.

So, no, I don’t think that all relationships are meant to end in marriage. The real endgame of dating young is to learn how to love. The statistical percent of couples that divorce in the United States is 40 to 50 percent—that’s not leaving kids a good message of how to love. So, someone has to teach them.

Sometimes people are meant to fall in love, but aren’t meant to stay together. One day, you’ll find someone who will make all the hassle of your past worth while. No regrets, just lessons learned.