Successful Relationships

I once came across a relevant definition of a successful relationship.  It is described not by the way it looks or how it turns out, or even if it lasts.  A successful relationship is all about what you used it for.  So if you are growing and becoming a better person, in that, you have become more loving and forgiving as a result of having been with or having known someone, then that is considered a successful relationship.  When we see our life experiences in this way, it is quite evident that the people we cross paths with did not appear in our lives merely by coincidence.  The relationships we form and situations we find ourselves in are by and large manifestations of our deepest desires to grow and expand.  Sometimes, we find ourselves totally flabbergasted by the circumstances that we awaken to at the end of the paths we choose to follow in life. If we take a moment to pause and create a distance from our present experiences, we will find that there is so much to see when we slow down.  The deliberate effort goes to examining our thoughts and creating space for life to just be the way that it is.