Authenticity: True love only happens when you are real Have you ever found yourself laughing simply because everyone else did? Agreed with your partner’s opinion even though you didn’t share it or said: “I love you” when you didn’t mean it. Did you ever do something inconsistent with your true self just to please someone or to get what you wanted? Of course we all have. We have lost bravery to be real! For many there is quite a gap between inside and person they present to world. How about Toni, dad who rents a Porsche to impress his date, while being delinquent in child support. Debby spends every Sunday at Grant’s parents but resents it. To keep peace, she refrains from claiming some of these Sundays on her terms. To be validated we often compromise who we are. Conditioned by our environment we have become products of culture we live in. No matter how good we are at playing roles eventually our truth emerges. Being fit to love means being real. When we are authentic our relationships become real and we never have to doubt them. Regardless of state of our relationships or how unsuccessfully we have tried to find love we have power to radically change today. Mutual respect, moral responsibility and authenticity are key to exceptional relationships. People in exceptional relationships are fit to love and in process they reap some profound rewards: ·They live much happier lives ·They cope far better with stress ·They have better sex more often ·They laugh more often and have more fun ·They are healthier and live longer ·They are more optimistic ·They feel more secure and stable No wonder we envy these people. In times like these, laced with tremendous uncertainty their relationships are like rock-solid anchors. Mahatma Gandhi said: “A coward is incapable of exhibiting love; it is prerogative of brave”. Let’s be brave!

© Allie Ochs, 2004 www.fit2love.com Unauthorized publication or distribution are strictly prohibited

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