40 Reasons Why I Will Always Love My Exes

It’s hard to look back at past relationships, but if we do, we can eventually see that we learned a lot from them. 

This is why I will always love my exes:

  1. They taught me how to love in different ways, and that being in love will feel and look very different with different people.
  2. They taught me things I didn't know about myself, and reminded me of the things I’m sure of about myself.
  3. They taught me what my limits are, and where I draw the line.
  4. They taught me that I like flowers for no reason, and love letters written from the heart.
  5. They taught me that my love language is words of affirmations, and not acts of service.
  6. They taught me that I not only love romance, but that I need romance.
  7. They taught me that not everyone is going to understand the journey I was and am on, but I need my partner to.
  8. They taught me who I knew I could be, and who I knew I couldn’t be.
  9. They taught me to push for more, and to never settle.
  10. They taught me who I wanted to be, and who I don’t want to be.
  11. They taught me to be honest with myself, and that I can’t hide my emotions very well.
  12. They taught me that being naked is fun, and so is sharing a shower. 
  13. They taught me that I can sense a lot, and that communication is key.
  14. They taught me that I can be stubborn, but I’m willing to admit when I’m wrong.
  15. They taught me that I am not perfect, and that no one is.
  16. They taught me that saying, "I'm sorry," is very hard, but a necessary thing to learn how to do.
  17. They taught me that I have strong convictions, and I’m not willing to waiver on most of them.
  18. They taught me that I am sensitive, and that will scare some people.
  19. They taught me what I'm willing to put up with, and what I’m not.
  20. They taught me that I will not do long distance, but that I was willing to try.
  21. They taught me that I’m not attracted to jealousy, but I understand it now.
  22. They taught me what I want, and what I don’t.
  23. They taught me what I need in a relationship, and that that won’t always be met.
  24. They taught me that I have to love myself before I could love them, and that that goes both ways.
  25. They taught me that because I loved them, didn’t mean they loved themselves.
  26. They taught me that I will always have things to work on, and so will my partner. 
  27. That taught me that you can love someone, and not be in love with him forever. 
  28. They taught me that someone can love you, but not be right for you.
  29. They taught me to fall, but do it knowing that the person you love may not fall with you.
  30. They taught me that I like sharing my bed with someone, even if I don’t sleep as well.
  31. They taught me that you won’t ever fully know who someone is, even after years of dating.
  32. They taught me that I like surprises, but only good ones.
  33. They taught me that I like physical touch, and I’m not afraid of PDA.
  34. They taught me that I don’t have a type, but I know almost instantly if I’m into you.
  35. They taught me that I love love, and that love isn’t meant to be difficult.
  36. They taught me that relationships take work, but when to draw the line.
  37. They taught me that I’m looking for someone who is working on himself, and that is beyond important to me.
  38. They taught me that no matter how much I love someone, I can't force or guide someone to change if he doesn’t want to.
  39. They taught me that I’d rather play and not win, then never play at all.
  40. Ultimately, they taught me who I am, and who I am not.

Every relationship we have is a challenge sent to us for reasons we may not know at the time, but will eventually come to understand. While it would be easy to look back with frustration, anger, and bitterness at past relationships, I think it's far more productive to look back and honor the months and years we've spent with the people that we loved. 

I rather look back at the time I spent with my exes, as lessons learned then time wasted. I’d rather think that each relationship was beautiful, important, and something that enriched my life, even though it’s hard to swallow the technical failure that comes with the end, then something ugly.

It's weird to think we can share a bed with someone for years, and then never speak, but so is life. 

In the end, by not doing or giving us what we needed, we learned a lot from our exes, but by doing and giving us other things, we also learned a lot from them. It’s because of this that we must let pieces our my hearts forever belong to each one of these people, and why we will continue to let the seeds they planted, grow into a forest of love that will forever be inside of our souls and hearts.  

I dedicate this to all the lovers. May you never stop loving and learning along the way.