Thinking we can change other people is an illusion. The best kinds of relationships are the ones where both people are free to be themselves.
I spent way too long in the past worried about the outcome of my friendships/relationships. The most liberating thing was how these last few years I found the strength to release the relationships to be whatever they wanted to be and to release the other person to do whatever they wanted to. Having lived a year and a half stripped of my friends, my family, my loved-ones, and my precious belongings...I learned to change with the tide of life and to focus on what matters most.
My expectations are still high of those I let in, but they are realistic, and based on who the people in my life really are...not my own expectations of them. I have adopted the practice of vigorous acceptance. If someone acts in a way that disagrees with me, I let them. I only have to remind myself that they are free to behave however they want...just as I am.
