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Love

I will be the first person to tell you that I have not had the best of luck when it comes to love. I've been burned and my heart has been broken.

've cried and I've spent hours thinking up plans to win back my "dream" boy. While I have had some good experiences, the bad ones always tend to stand out a little clearer.

But I will also be the first person to tell you that I've learned so much more from my failed attempts at romance then I did from my successful ones. I learned how to cry.

I learned that when you open yourself up to people you open yourself up to the possibility of heartache. I've learned that not all relationships are fairy tales. I've learned how to survive, how to move on and how to let go. There are still times when I feel weary and tired of this game of love.

Then I see my parents. I watch my Mom's face light up when my Dad walks through the door every night and she throws her arms around him. I watch how my Dad always tells my mom the dinner she cooked was delicious, even if no one liked it.

As I watch them, I know that even after almost 25 years of marriage, they are still deeply in love. There are still times when the only thing I want is to just give up and close myself off.

Then I listen to my grandfather tell me the story for the 100th time of how he knew in high school he wanted to marry my grandmother. I remember my grand-parents at their 50th wedding anniversary and the smiles they gave each other and knowing they were still in love.

So even in this fast-paced world filled with cheaters and divorce, I still have hope. I have hope that I can keep on loving and I hope that I'll always be able to open myself up. I know I'll get hurt and I'll cry. But I'll make memories and learn lessons.

And I know one day I'll find the love of my life; the one who will always tell me I cook delicious dinners and whom I'll smile at on our 50th wedding anniversary.

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