Woke up today thinking about how important our emotions are to our overall health.
After 30 years of being married to the same woman my relationship fell apart 7 years ago. I remember being shocked and disconsolate and thinking the world had come to an end.

What saved me from oblivion was an article I had read years earlier about loving relationships. The article said that there was no real formula for a successful marriage or common law union and that some relationships were like the sun, long term and warm, while others were like shooting stars, brilliant light, white hot, for a short flash. Someone wiser than I said " Everyone knows when to start an affair, but few of us know when to end one."

One thing is for sure is that there is nothing quite like being in love. The rich and famous regularly change partners because they have the means to avoid the financial pitfalls that most couples fall into. Granted there are many rich and famous couples who stay together for their entire lives, but the majority change partners when the thrill is gone.

Money obligations including mortgages, shared expenses, and children become the reasons we stay together rather than the original physical, spiritual, or chemical attractions that drew us together in the first place. It's a real tragedy how many people stay together for all of the wrong reasons and forfeit true love in the exchange. Shakespeare rightly said that it's better to have loved and lost, than to have never loved at all.

I eventually found someone new to love. I still regularly see and talk to my children and grandchildren, who I love dearly. But I also have someone who makes my life the passionate affair I believe it's supposed to be. Being in love makes you well.

Be well!