I became insane, with long intervals of horrible sanity.
Edgar Allen Poe
I never removed anyone from my life, they all died in the accident of trust.
Fyodor Dostoevsky
As friendships grow closer, conflict becomes more difficult to avoid. And this is often a good thing. Because the closer we get to each other’s hearts, the more triggers rise into view.
Because you can’t fully know someone until you ignite each other’s fire. Because you won’t know if a connection has legs, until it has been tested by conflict.
And when it is, there is a choice to be made. Walk away in disgust, or walk toward it, an effort to deepen the connection.
Conflict isn’t the adversary of connection. Fear of confrontation is.