“Forever” relationships are still possible and your grandparents are a living testimony to this. If this is so, how come most relationships don’t last? Unfortunately, relationships today are a reflection of what Pope Francis calls the “throwaway culture.” We see that the status of relationships among people seems to change as often as one changes clothes or cell phones.
What could be the root cause of this? I’m no expert but my grandparents and even my parents would tell me stories of how they were raised by their parents and the riotous but heart-warming adventures of living with many siblings and not having enough money to make ends meet. But hard work, sacrifice and a lot of love always kept food on the table and clothes on their backs.
Statistics today show that the percentage of children growing up in single-parent or single-child households is steadily increasing. Maybe this lack of a stable home environment has made it more difficult for teens and young adults to form lasting relationships. However, I also think that single parents are modern-day heroes who are doing the best they can to raise their children and must receive all the support and encouragement from the community.
Pope Francis, in his apostolic exhortation Amoris Laetitia (AL), affirms what makes a “forever” relationship:
“In family life, we need to cultivate that strength of love which can help us fight every evil threatening it. Love does not yield to resentment, scorn for others or the desire to hurt or to gain some advantage. The Christian ideal, especially in families, is a love that never gives up. I am sometimes amazed to see men or women who have had to separate from their spouse for their own protection, yet, because of their enduring conjugal love, still try to help them, even by enlisting others, in their moments of illness, suffering or trial. Here too we see a love that never gives up.”
True love is not defined by “kilig” (feeling exhilarated by an exciting or romantic experience) but by concrete actions, sacrifices, going the extra mile, leaving your comfort zone, giving up something you truly like for the others.
So if we want a “forever” relationship, let’s start building it now by loving – first of all, those nearest to us like our family and classmates, our colleagues, even the people we ride with every day in the LRT (light rail transit) or the jeepney. This kind of love can heal and transform our relationships and can infuse courage to live the wonderful adventure of making family.
