My cousin is going though a rough period in his life. He just got out of a seven year, on/off relationship and it's hitting him hard. They got together young and have had a lot of break ups and make ups. Three years ago she needed space (she's about three years younger than him and was 17 when they got together) so they broke up and said they weren't gonna see other people. Then she hooked up with someone else and, in retaliation, he spent time with his ex-girlfriend, something he knew would drive her crazy. They got back together soon after. Last year they broke up again, she even moved all her stuff out, and they both swore that was the real end. Then she seriously injured herself and they were back on. Finally he broke it off for good (though I suppose that's relative at this point huh) a few months ago because she said she didn't want to get married. He wants that, and kids, and thought they were on that path. He's handled the end well, until recently when he started seeing his first ex-girlfriend again. She's happily married now so they've only met up twice as friends but he clearly feels like they never should've ended things between them. But there's really nothing he can do about that now.
My longest relationship was also seven years, off and on. Going over my relationships since then is kinda depressing. A year and a half, again off and on, is the second longest. That's not too bad I guess. But everything else is pretty non-substantial; eight months, four months, a lot of two and three month flings. Nothing to write home about. Even more pathetic, I can't even remember how many of those relationships I actually applied myself in. My engagement has become the big marker of success, though not by choice. I just have to get over this mental block of not having kept much together. When I got past the eight month mark in that year and a half relationship, it was a major milestone. Obviously I've yet to approach anything close to seven years, but I'd like to think I will someday. Relationships are tough and I've not always been good at them. But I'm determined to get better in that area.
