Lucky in love.

I try to avoid negative situations, negative relationships. Because negativity tends to drag me down. That's why I felt better when I left my family as a teen-ager and went off to college. It was a better, more positive atmosphere. That's why I wrote off my own sister for many years. Because she was a non-recovering alcoholic. We're on good terms today. Because she chose to recover. To get things right. One thing I've learned. I can't change individuals. Nor can I change some bad situations. So I have a choice. More or less ignore the situations. Or get out. Another thing. When I'm in love, I have absolutely no desire to change my loved one. That's the nature of true love. Unconditional acceptance. Chances are, I didn't love my sister. Because there wasn't unconditional acceptance. Maybe unconditional love is the most difficult thing to achieve. And maybe one can never be certain that it's been achieved. Because maybe the love has never been put to an ultimate test. Anyway, I feel very good when I'm in love. It's happened only twice in my lifetime. Which ain't bad. I wonder if others are so lucky. --Jim Broede