You've been seeing someone for a few weeks now; a couple dates in and you can see yourself actually being happy with them. Showing them to your friends and family. Branching out from your regular "Netflix and Chill."

You tell your closest friend all about it — play by play, excitedly. Your friends comment on the happiness flushing your face when you talk about your date last Friday; "Uh oh, sounds like someone's catching feelings." All of a sudden, that happy-butterflies-all-up-in-your-stomach feeling is replaced with feelings of dread.

But why?

"Catching feelings," when actually understood in this context, simply means you care about someone deeper than physical lust. The one-night-stand culture seen day to day as a college student perplexes me due to my generation growing up in a Disney-princess filled childhood. It always seemed that every aspect of love was so heavily weighed on the passion and dedication to a single person and riding off into the sunset.

Why have we all of a sudden started moving toward such disconnected and anxious relationships, where we're scared of feeling close to someone?

Disconnectedness in modern relationship is blamed on numerous things; social media communication, introvert-ism and extrovert-ism, divorce rates and negative anecdotes surrounding committed relationships. But even through these reasons, which are relatively valid, an overwhelming desire to feel connected to each other and bond with those we care about still comes through - and we shut this connection down by telling ourselves and each other we aren't worthy!

Nothing about caring for another human being should be negative - so what if he doesn't like you back, or she doesn't call for the second date, so what if you get rejected. For every time you turn down a date or miss a connection out of fear, you risk losing the change to meet your best friend or love of your life.

Take the chance, and never bash someone to "catching feelings" for you. That just means they care about you and have a genuine interest in you. If you don't reciprocate that's perfectly acceptable - but don't bash someone for having true human emotion in this day and age. And similarly, don't shun your own feelings for others out of fear of commitment.

In Summary

I've always been sort of a "yes-man" (in girl form), living life like the Nike slogan - "Just Do It." Those dates I wasn't sure would surmount to anything were always still on the calendar, and any new friendships that came out of possible romantic interest are welcomed. In my current time and place, I'm happily committed in a relationship with someone I can honestly say is my best friend - and I owe that relationship to the idea of always being up for a new connection, and letting fate take its course. Even though we always picture ourselves finding "our person" in a random encounter (just like in a rom-com), we have to remember to say yes to the random encounters in the first place.

Go on that date, say "yes" to the movie, meet up for coffee, fall in love. Catch the feelings you're scared of. Life is so fulfilling when you see all you possibly can of it.