Relationships Are Like Car Crashes -- Crash Into Me

It occured to me yesterday that relationships and first encounters are very much like car crashes. They are both determined by fate. It is the way in which we crash that can state a lot about a relationship and the impact that it will have on our lives. I shall outline a few crashes below and leave it up to you to decide which relationships have made the biggest impact in your life, beginning with the minor ones.


Fender Benders: These are people that you bump into on a day to day everyday basis. They register as a collision but its very minor. Everyone walks away unharmed from these crashes. It's a mere coincidence of being at the right place at the right time. These are crushes, if you will. Someone who catches your attention, turns your head, makes you do a double take. Examples: People on the street, actors/actresses, your next door neighbor, your doctor/dentist, vendors, and the like.

Rear-End Collisions: These crashes sneak up on you by their very nature. You are taken by surprise, perhaps at your own reaction to the initial altercation. It comes out of nowhere, and you're startled at how they make your heart race and body temperature rise, temporarily knocking you off course and forcing you, possibly, to consider things that you had never thought to consider before. The one sneaking up on you is always at fault, as the one rear-ending you in a car crash, because they should have known better than to catch you off-guard and with your defenses down, completely vulnerable. Still, these are rarely fatal and once the initial shock wears off, things return to the way they were prior to the crash. In rare occasions, through complications unforseen, one may never recover and a loss of friendship might occur leaving an empty void that may remain forever. Examples: This is most likely to be someone you know, like a friend you've known for forever, but never really considered as a potential mate until they snuck up on you.

Head-On Collisions: These crashes are people you meet head-on and immediately fall for; feelings hit you like a ton of bricks at mach 1. You are down for the count and there is no getting up. These crashes take fatalities, nothing remains the same, lives are changed forever. Your heart is ripped from your chest cavity and you go numb. You cant breathe, cant sleep, cant talk, cant think. They say its the most euphoric of feelings ever, like being obliterated and blown away into gazillions of pieces. It stuns you and shakes you to your core. Days are a daze. You replay the incident in your mind over and over and over again recounting the tale to anyone who will listen, pleading your case, trying to make sense of it, writing a detailed report even in attempt at having your mind rationalize what happened. What's even more strange is how people enjoy the feeling, almost a high or rush. You dont see it coming, but when it hits you there's no turning back. Example: The one. When it happens, you'll know it.

Sadly, not all crashes are mutual. Some accidents cause cars to be side-swiped, forcing a single person off the road and into a ditch. Some accidents leave marks on one person and others walk away untouched. Sometimes, you meet someone you wish you'd never ever ever met. Some people never walk away.

The next time you meet someone, whether its a fender bender or a head-on collision, be more conscious of the impact it could potentially cause to you and also them. Some crashes take intelligence and skill to avoid.

In relationships there is no guarantee, no insurance policies, no liability. If you know someone else won't make it, don't bother interrupting their life.