LabelsMeaningsSlotsClassificationsPigeon-holes!

Once in a while, nostalgia drives home a point. And rarely, Elder Brothers gets a little serious and sentimental. Here's a post from his secret blog from the past.

Thankfully, this phase is well behind him and he's got more than what he ever wanted.

So, this goes out to all you guys who are just into a relationship. Don't worry about the labels. Now is not the time.

"In the last two years, ever since I gave up on a soap-operatic semi-dysfunctional relationship that lasted over half a decade, I have got to know about a dozen women, each of whom, I've had the dubious distinction of going out for a few weeks, extending to a maximum of three months.

"They were not relationships," argues my present "I-don't-know-what-to-call-this-or-where-to-slot-this-more-than-friendship-we-have" friend.

Hmmm... so I wonder: Is it really important to slot every bond we make into someplace or something? Don't relationships define themselves with time? I think most boy-girl friendships have potential to be relationships if pursued with an open mind and most girlfriend-boyfriend relationships are prone to failure even under commitment. So isn't it futile trying to slot them anyway when more or less all relationships are work-in-progress?

I've seen relationships turn to lasting friendships and friendships turn to solid relationships in a matter of time. A lot of the women I went out with are now either married or getting there and I like the fact that I can be friends with them and laugh about the twists that life had introduced to us.

So, does everything need to have a meaning? I think labels and terms give relationships a very transactional feel. I think slots, classifications and meanings are to show you mean business. And commitment seems like some sort of a memorandum of understanding!

Words, words, words. When all that they can express and more can be communicated by touch, by one simple hug and one tender kiss, in just a moment!

Can't we just ban words from relationships and just let people be? Happy, that is!"