Getting Played?

As silly and immature as it sounds, the initial stages of most relationships can be classified as a game. Most people like to play games, but hate to lose them. The relationship game is slightly different than most games, but more often than not, there is a winner and a loser. Unlike the loser of most competitive games who simply move on without a thought, the loser of the relationship game suffers an emotional defeat unlike any other. They have to wake up every day, a week or perhaps months with the idea that they just weren't good enough.

Though both the winner and loser are classified as players of the game, the true "player" is the winner. He/She usually has a knack for the game due to the fact that he has mastered both the art of manipulation and the idea that the control of any relationship belongs to the person who cares least. The fact that this person couldn't care less whether or not the "loser" is in their life is the sole reason that they maintain control over their partner, or in this situation the "adversary."

At some point in our dating lives, the majority will "get played." However a vast majority of daters will also play the "winner" in this childish dating game. So if we hate that dating has become a game, we can most certainly point the finger at ourselves as a contributing factor. Dating is and will forever be a game as long as people are afraid of vulnerability. I mean, who wants to put themselves out there with the chance that someone might in beat them at the game?

Will the dating game ever change? Probably not. In fact I fear things will get worse before they ever get better. Another question is why would we want it to? I compare going on a date with someone you know will sleep with you to playing a basketball against a team you know you will beat. Sure, it feels good for a moment, but when the game's over, you're right back where you started...unsatisfied. Perhaps the chase is the sole reason dating excites us to begin with. Or maybe it's because on the inside we are still children and doing things we are not supposed to do gives us an unexplainable rush...

The point is that as much as people dislike the game that dating has become, it is in fact the "game" that keeps us interested. So unless we wake up one day and are suddenly satisfied by other things that we have (excluding children,) why would we ever change the way we approach the wonderful yet frustrating world of dating?!