That is so well put, ECHOES.

There is a tension between allowing ourselves the intimacy and connection and knowing it will all end. I think learning to manage that dichotomy serves us well for future relationships. Because no relationship is forever, they can end for so many reasons--break-up, death, moving away, growing apart, etc. But that shouldn't stop us allowing ourselves to have them. You know, I never ever thought that one of the most important things I would learn in therapy was how to have a relationship. There are so many parts to it, and tolerating/managing this dichotomy is just one of them.