Don't Walk Me Like a Dog.

I said to a friend the other day "I don't want to be in a relationship because I want to be in a relationship, I just want to want to be in a relationship with a person because I want to be with that person." It's the truth. 

It doesn't bother me at all to be alone, now that I am used to it.  I like climbing a mountain by myself and coming and going as I please (when I am not with my children), I don't care if I am eating alone or sitting in the quiet, or saying that I haven't seen one human being all weekend.  I like my independence.  I am extremely social, but after a couple of years, I have discovered that my favorite person to hang out with is myself.  Lol, seriously.  Time with me is awesome, and I am my favorite person to be around because I am quiet and I agree with myself.  There's never anything to fight about between me, myself and I.  Want to go to a movie?  SURE!  Want to eat some sushi?  SURE!  Can you pick up your underwear off the floor? SURE, they're mine, right?  I mean, I am laughing as I write this, but it's true, and it is a really hard thing to give up.  The only way I will want to want a relationship is if it just happens to fall into place with that one person who is so awesome that I find hanging out with him is just as awesome as hanging out alone....and I am stiff competition.  Sorry, guys.

So when I explained how I feel, this is what my friend said.....

Have you ever watched people with their dogs? I said yes.

And now I will paraphrase from here on out.....

There are owners who have their dog on a leash.  The dog wants to stop and sniff something, or the dog wants to play with another dog, or just not walk anymore, or walk faster or run....the owner is jerking the dog's neck and scooting him along, making him go or slowing him down.  Neither the dog nor the owner is happy, or it sure doesn't look that way. 

Then there are the owners who walk side by side and in harmony with their dogs.  The dog stops to sniff a flower, the owner stops to admire the dog taking time to sniff the flower.  One of them veers off, the other follows, but there is a trust that they are always walking near one another and neither feels as if they will be abandoned. They can both be trusted, happy, and together....they don't require a leash.

Leashes suck. 

Don't walk me like a dog on a leash.  Not only do I not require a leash, enjoy a leash, or deserve a leash, but I don't believe in trying to put a leash on someone else either.  Walk in harmony with me or not at all because I am not the owner who jerks someone around and forces them to move.....I would be more likely to let go of the leash and let the dog run off to get hit by a car if it's too much effort to walk peacefully. 

Brilliant analogy.  Right?