The whole package

Came across this while reading some book...

The writer wrote... "Loving someone is akin to an experienced jewelry trader buying a combi pack of gems.."

So what is a "combi pack"? It is a package with a mix of gems... some good... some outstanding... and always mixed with some crappy stones... traders are supposed to bid for them... and the price is always overestimated because people tend to focus on the perfect stones... If you are lucky, you may find some precious diamonds or aquamarines... if not, there are always some pretty turquoise as consolation... but the real catch is... what do you do with the other stones? Alot of jewelry traders are full of grouses for these combi packs because they are always temporarily blinded by the sparkly gems, pay an exorbitant price... but only manage to sell a few of these and soon, they get stucked with a truckload of worthless stones... with no capacity to buy new gems unless they manage to sell more of it away...

However, from experience, they will realize that the trick is to ignore the perfect gems... don't even look at them because they are blinding... instead, focus on the bad stones... Scrutinize them for a long while... and if you decide you can work something out of them... for example, sell them to some artist to decorate some photo frames... then get the pack by all means...

It's the same with relationships... People always fall in love with the most perfect aspects of each other's personalities. Who wouldn't? Anybody can love the most wonderful parts of another person. But that's not the clever trick. The really smart thing to do is this: Can you accept the flaws? Can you view these flaws as strengths? Can you look at your partner's faults honestly and say, "I can work around that. I can make something out of that"? Because the good stuff is always going to be there, and it's always going to be pretty and sparkly, but it's the crap underneath that can ruin the relationship...

In essence, it's a whole package... don't expect to enjoy the goods without accepting the bads... remember... no one is perfect in the world... and there are no free lunches... be prepared to view your partner's flaws as a plus... and that may require lots of work sometimes! But it will pay off ultimately... as there is absolute satisfaction from a loving and fully functional relationship... Definitely worth it! ;)