Bob described himself as, “a forward, out of the box man, with great imagination and business acumen.” He lives in  New Jersey. His change involved a journey into the world of dating after the woman he loved and had shared much of his life with died. He dwelt on the love he had experienced and found it extremely difficult to find someone he could share a similar type of relationship.

“I struggled with cherishing the relationship we had shared and opening my heart to someone new.”

At first, he compared everyone to her. Slowly, he began to feel comfortable with the emotions of being willing to love again, but not entirely. Bob struggled with cherishing the relationship he had shared with the love of his life and opening his heart to someone new. He knew that finding true love again was very important, but to have that experience again, he had to move on. So he started dating.

Sometimes, he was not in a place where he was able or willing to handle some of the many challenges the women he dated lives presented. Often, he discovered that when mutual interests presented itself, the other person also had things they were not ready to move on from and it became mentally draining.

“I decided I needed a break from dating.”

He was still very much open to the possibility of a relationship and would strive towards it if it came along. In the meantime, he continued to excel professionally, takes advantage of opportunities to meet new people, and to mentally and emotionally process his loss. He consistently visualized a bright future that he could share with someone special.

Robert G. was interviewed for the ASPECTS OF CHANGE book and consented to share his experience. Many things have changed since the interview.