What is lasting love and what are some keys to maintaining lasting love?
Lasting love can be described as a committed and positive love life that endures time, trials, temptation, and triumphs in the end.
I have found that making relationships endure requires constant attention to and nurturing over time. If we don’t actively work to strengthen and nurture our relationships, love will eventually fade. Just like exercise helps to build muscle that keeps us physically fit, we need to exercise and maintain our emotional muscles for them to grow and stay in love.
Everyone experiences romantic love occasionally, but it takes real work to fall and stay in love, because love is more than just an emotional feeling in real life. Love requires attention, effort, and energy or it will not endure.
Two keys of lasting love:
Consistency: To stay in love, you have to show up everyday. Make it a point to take some time each day to be present for your lover. It doesn’t take a lot of time each day to make an impact. It’s like an investment account, even a small amount invested daily can compound and turn into large sums.
Conflict Resolution: Disagreements and conflicts are natural parts of any healthy relationship. The important thing for a lasting love is how we manage these conflicts when they arise. My wife has helped me to learn the importance of not letting unresolved conflicts last too long. My wife and I have two different styles when it comes to conflict resolution. She usually wants to talk immediately, and like most men, I want time to process and come back. Whatever your style may be, the key is to make sure that you don’t allow too much time to pass before you resolve it.
