youngandcatholic

January 26, 2026 | youngandcatholic

The First Awakening – Young Love’s Fleeting Symphony

There is an unparalleled electricity to first love—a symphony of new sensations that forever alters the landscape of a young heart. It is a dizzying blend of discovery, where every conversation feels like a secret, and every glance carries the weight of a novel. This love is less about the other person and more about the self, a thrilling mirror reflecting back a version of you that is suddenly desirable, worthy, and seen. The world seems to sharpen into focus, painted in brighter colors, because you have become a central character in your own epic story. Yet, this intensity is built on a foundation of projection and imagination. You are not just falling for the person, but for the idea of love itself, for the poetry it inspires, and for the exhilarating feeling of being chosen. It is a beautiful, necessary narcissism, a crash course in emotional vulnerability where every high is celestial and every low feels apocalyptic.

This stage of love is inherently transient, not because it is less real, but because its purpose is often catalytic rather than permanent. It serves as the emotional forge where you learn fundamental truths: how to give a piece of yourself away, how to navigate jealousy and insecurity, how to communicate desires, and how to survive heartbreak. The inevitable ending, when it comes, feels like the end of the world precisely because your world was so small and this love was its sun. The grief is profound, a raw and disorienting pain that seems to have no endpoint. Yet, within this devastation lies the first great lesson of the heart—the lesson of resilience. You slowly learn that you can, and will, continue. You begin to differentiate the memory of the person from the memory of the feeling, and in doing so, you start to understand love as an experience separate from a single individual.

Thus, young love’s greatest gift is often its conclusion. It leaves an indelible imprint, a bittersweet watermark on your soul that forever informs your capacity for connection. It teaches you what you need, what you cannot tolerate, and what you are willing to fight for. The person may fade into a nostalgic memory, but the emotional intelligence gained becomes a permanent resident. You carry forward a clarified understanding of your own heart, a bit more cautious perhaps, but infinitely wiser. This first love does not fail by ending; it succeeds by completing its primary work—transforming you from a novice of the heart into an apprentice of relationships, forever marked by the beautiful, painful, and essential education of its fleeting symphony.

August 13, 2025 | youngandcatholic

The Unfiltered Classroom – Love as a Crucible for Identity

Young love operates as the most intense, unfiltered classroom for identity formation. In the crucible of an early romantic relationship, we are not just learning about another person, but actively constructing and testing versions of ourselves. Do we become more outgoing, or more anxious? Do we compromise our interests, or discover new ones? This love holds up a mirror, forcing confrontations with our insecurities, our family baggage, and our deepest desires for the future. The dynamics at play—the push and pull of independence versus fusion, the negotiation of boundaries, the management of ego—are a live workshop in interpersonal psychology. Every argument is a lesson in conflict resolution; every moment of support is a lesson in empathy. It is a messy, real-time experiment in becoming.

This process is often fraught with drama and mistakes precisely because the stakes feel so existentially high. Without the tempering perspective of life experience, a disagreement can feel like a fundamental incompatibility, and a breakup can feel like the dissolution of one’s entire universe. Young lovers frequently operate in absolutes, speaking in the languages of “forever” and “never.” This is not naivety, but a necessary intensity. It is through these all-consuming connections that we learn the weight of our words, the impact of our actions, and the non-negotiable values we hold. We learn where we lose ourselves and where we find a better self in partnership. The relationship becomes a proving ground for character, revealing our capacity for loyalty, our tendencies toward jealousy, and our strength in vulnerability.

Ultimately, these early entanglements, whether they last six months or several years, are less about finding “The One” and more about meeting the many potential versions of oneself. They help us answer core questions: What kind of partner do I want to be? What kind of life do I envision? The relationship that ends is not a failure but a graduation. You walk away not just with memories, but with a more defined self. You carry the lessons—the knowledge of how you love, how you wish to be loved, and what you truly need to thrive. In this way, young love is the essential, chaotic, and profoundly formative apprenticeship for all the deeper, more mature connections that may follow, having sculpted a clearer you from the raw material of inexperience.

October 24, 2024 | youngandcatholic

The Infinite Horizon – Love’s Role in Expanding a Young World

For the young, love is less a harbor and more a passport. It acts as a powerful catalyst for expansion, pushing open doors to worlds, ideas, and versions of life that previously seemed distant or unimaginable. It begins with the simple, profound act of deeply knowing someone from a different background—a different family culture, set of friends, taste in music, or aspirations. Through their eyes, you are introduced to new neighborhoods, new philosophies, and new ways of being. Your world, once bounded by the familiar corridors of school, home, and childhood friendships, suddenly doubles in size. This love encourages risk and exploration, whether it’s a spontaneous road trip, attending a concert of a band you’d never listen to alone, or simply engaging in late-night conversations that challenge everything you thought you knew.

This expansive quality makes young love a potent antidote to the inherent self-absorption of adolescence. The intense focus shifts from “Who am I?” to “Who are we?” and “What can we create together?” Collaborative dreams are born—plans to travel, to start a band, to move to a new city, or to change the world. Love provides a brave, shared front against the uncertainties of the future. It fuels ambition and courage, making daunting steps into adulthood feel less lonely and more like a shared adventure. There is a unique sense of invincibility in a young partnership, a feeling that as long as you have each other, you can figure anything out. This optimism, while sometimes bruised by reality, is a precious fuel that propels growth and daring.

Yet, the true, lasting expansion often survives the relationship itself. Even if the romantic partnership dissolves, the personal growth it spurred remains. The new interests discovered, the confidence gained from being adored, the resilience built from navigating challenges together—these become permanent facets of your identity. You are, forever after, someone who has loved deeply and been shaped by it. The world no longer looks as small as it once did. You understand more, you’ve experienced more, and you carry within you the proof that connection can fundamentally alter your trajectory. In this way, young love fulfills its most vital role: it propels you from the shore of your upbringing into the wider ocean of human experience, leaving you forever changed, broader, and more ready for the complex, beautiful journey ahead.

November 2, 2023 | youngandcatholic

Positive Change – Are you Resistant to It?

Military Spouse Appreciation DayMilitary Spouse Appreciation Day is a day set aside to honor the spouses who support our troops. The military spouse is a part of the US armed forces just as much as the service member and has a tough time also. The spouse faces pressures which are just as intense as the pressures that the service member specific day which has been set aside is the Friday each year before Mother’s Day. The day is the result of President Ronald Regan’s first speech and proclamation on May 23rd 1984, which recognized military spouses as a part of the armed services and their service as a valuable part of the readiness of our armed military could not function without the commitment of the spouses. The military places so much demand on the service member that the spouse has to work as the other half of a team. The spouse usually has to put their own career on hold because the military causes the family to have to move around so frequently. Many spouses wind up having to be homemakers so there usually isn’t a second income for the family.

Combine this with the fact that service members usually don’t make a lot of money anyway and you can see how many military families live in a constant financial custom for this day is that whoever is president will usually commemorate the day with a speech and a proclamation. As far as I am concerned this should be done even though it doesn’t adequately recognize the spouses for their service and military community is a close knit group out of necessity. Spouses generally rely on each other during and between deployments. The fact that the military family has to move around so often forces the spouse and the family to learn to depend on others within the military community.Deployments are the biggest enemy of marriages in the armed forces. Long deployments exacerbate any small problems or miscommunications that the family may have been having all along. The remaining spouse has to be both a mother and father to the children and may have to fend for the family alone for long periods of time.

The primary breadwinner may not be able to contribute to the things which have to be done because they may not even be able to communicate with their families for very long periods of time. I have seen cases where the children didn’t even know their parent because the parent had been away for such a long period of time. The military is a self contained community and does its level best to provide everything that the family needs for day to day survival but there simply is no substitute for a two parent home.I have also witnessed situations where a troop arrested a foreigner who couldn’t speak much English at all only to be deployed overseas and have to leave the spouse to fiend for herself. Many times the proper paperwork needed to give the spouse power of attorney had not been filed or was lost. In the case of the families of lower ranking enlisted troops many times the family is just barely surviving. Sometimes the free housing that the military does offer is the only difference between life and death for the military family. Riceland Enterprises

March 5, 2022 | youngandcatholic

Nj Wedding Dj – Questions

A large piece of the puzzle when brides are searching for their wedding DJ that most couples overlook is how comfy they really feel with that specific DJ company. A majority of couples are fixated about the cost and if the NJ wedding DJ has ever worked at that reception venue. The most productive DJs which are located in NJ are really customer-centered and have a really easy approach to wedding entertainment.

If you are interviewing NJ wedding DJs and you get the feel they are in it for the money, you can guarantee that they’ll not give you the ‘bend over backwards’ customer service that you’d receive at the more popular #randurls[1|1||enchanted]# companies in NJ, like Enchanted Celebrations. One tip that you simply can listen for during the interview using the DJ is the use of “I” statements instead of “you” statements:

DJs and other wedding vendors that use “I” statements are only searching out for themselves and not the client. Below is an example:

We can all see the horror story the couple has to say right after the honeymoon. They go like, “I gave my DJ a checklist of songs and he did not play any of them!” Well, of course the DJ didn’t play the songs you requested, the NJ wedding DJ played the songs they he/she knows “what works”; apparently yours didn’t make the cut. Unfortunately, the DJ gave them precisely what he mentioned he was gonna do.

Enchanted Celebrations train new DJs and supply workshops for currently employed DJs; a primary topic that is covered during these workshops is “working in the checklist.” Our professional development program for DJs is partly focused on working the brides music requests into the wedding entertainment and creating an atmosphere from that checklist. After the atomosphere has been produced, our DJs individual input of music will come in. As a reminder, we constantly offer Free of charge, no obligation, in house consultations as well as an array of other wedding services and products to NJ.

About Enchanted Celebrations

Enchanted Celebrations is New Jersey’s leader in wedding providers. Providing services to NJ. Among only a handful of companies that offer Disc Jockey, Photography, Videography, Ministers, and Ambient Lighting to events all over New Jersey, Philadelphia, and also the NYC Metro Area. Enchanted Celebrations is also the leader in offering web-based preparing tools to all of their clients.

At Enchanted Celebrations, together with our videographers, wedding DJs, and photographers are seasoned professionals who receive professional development coaching in the team attitude of weddings and special events. Even with the ability to to figure with each vendor and the additional training in the team atomosphere of weddings is to ensure that the bride and groom have the best wedding, most of our clients select to us for video, photos, and DJ (if they’re doing a video). They use us for multiple services because they grasp, with Enchanted Celebrations they can receive flawless execution of their special day. All you need is to decision us once, all your questions will be answered because Enchanted Celebrations is your leading NJ wedding DJ experts!

Team oriented-based family and the relationship is what differs from other wedding service companies and Enchanted Celebrations. All of our team members are delighted to work together as one to ensure that your special day will go smoothly. Our group members take pride in getting the driving force within the wedding industry and to be apart of a group that’s rooted in customer service and not fiscal gain. We can exceed our demanding customer expectations through our team approach which is done through our customer satisfaction.

Memories that will keep you spellbound for a lifetime will be created with the help of Enchanted Celebrations. Our team understands clearly that the event is a once-in-a-life time event and it needs to be as fantastic as you have imageined it to be. We set our standards high! We are focused to giving you over 100% efforts and treatment from planning your party to your last good-by. You will get the best of the best for your event because all of out team members are professionals in their field.

New Jersey’s most recognized casts of entertainers are the disc jockeys employed by Enchanted Celebrations. At Enchanted Celebrations all of our entertainers have the experience, energy, and creativity that are going to be needed at your event in order to make it a memorable 1. All of our emcees have years of experience in the expert entertainment industry and carry the Enchanted ‘Ultimate Music Selection.’

In addition to picking the right NJ wedding DJ, here are several guidelines to help you explore for that perfect wedding venue.

Trust your instincts. Once you arrive in a specific venue you may automatically have a certain feeling towards it. You have got to trust your instinct. If you are feeling a bound positive vibration to the venue then that’s a good start. In the same means, you’ll understand automatically if a bound venue is not right for you and your wedding. This doesn’t mean though that you should not be logical in choosing a wedding venue. It’s the place where you will exchange vows with the person you love so it’s to feel right.

Take your time. Don’t ever rush in choosing the right wedding venue. A wedding is a terribly vital event so take time to get the venue right. Ideally, you must begin trying for a venue a minimum of a year before the wedding date. This would provide you sufficient time to create the right choices and change the venue in case something happens.

Think about the size. The dimensions of the venue may be a terribly vital consideration. If the venue is simply too little, the marriage can loose its intimacy. If it’s too huge, it will be cramped and uncomfortable. The dimensions of your wedding will depend after all on the amount of your guests. Therefore before looking for a marriage you must a minimum of have a rough plan of how several guests you’ll be planning to invite. Be as precise as possible. You cannot say that you simply’re designing to invite from 200 to 500 guests. The 300 person distinction would matter a lot in terms of the venue size. You need to conjointly leave ample house for the dance area. The a lot of guests you have, the larger area you would like to allot for the dance area.

Check the parking space. One among the complaints of folks who have attended weddings is the dearth of parking space. Be sure that the marriage venue you may select has ample space for all of your guests. Parking may be a minor thought but it will spell the distinction between a contented guest and a dissatisfied individual.

Know the restrictions of the venue. Be positive to raise concerning the restrictions of a wedding venue if there are any. There may be restrictions concerning noise thus you would possibly not be ready to employ a band or maybe a sound system. Some venues have time restrictions whereas some would permit you to party all night long. There are even venues with decorations restrictions. Check if the marriage venue would allow you to bring your own caterer, decorator, florist, etc as a result of there are venues that have preferred contractors and suppliers.

February 3, 2022 | youngandcatholic

Forever Love

This morning, I was moved for a long time. An old man supports his wife with his one hand and his other hand was carrying a basket filled with fresh vegetables and fruits moving forward slowly. Happy air covered their faces, although one and other deep wrinkles just like deep river, no matter wrinkle or river seems peaceful and resting this time. I stared quietly on them and feel the world was still. Slowly moved to the footstep with successful, the wife raised her head smiling to her deep loving spouse and the man held his wife’s hand more tightly. I can’t help myself bursting into tears. Few things can move me at recent fast moved society but only love which has no artificial trail and never to show purposely before the public. They move forward continuously whose ten steps just equal to two steps for a common people. I didn’t move my steps until their back shadow disappeared from my eyesight. I have not got married but I have a boyfriend I love deeply——-we spent our four college year together although my parents never consent to our association because of he was born in a poor peasant family and they never thought I can get a happy life once I married him who are work for selling small gadgets——-and never transfer my emotion to others no matter there are how many people doubt our future.

Society developed like this: if man wants to marry a girl, first despite her merits and shortcomings and despite whether she is beautiful or ugly, he should own buildings and cars. People believe that girls should marry millionaires and girls’ job is to capture man’s heart. Nevertheless, I never think so. I never impose deep pressure on him. I will try my best to make him the happiest man since he is the only people accompanying me until I got old.

My relatives and classmates said I am different from other girls for I am independent, I have my own thoughts and ideas, I never go with the tide. They forecast that I will live hard. It doesn’t matter. Everyone has only life, if not to choose who I love the most, I will regret. I never thought to live comfortable in the future but thought to create a bright future with him——-the person I love the most who also love me the most. What I want actually is little: happy and satisfying life. When I am old, will you willing to hold my hand moving through one and another street? Will you willing to clap eyes on me with deep emotion? We are not wealthy, but we are contented and pleasant.

January 4, 2022 | youngandcatholic

Why Can’t Others Accept Older Lovers

If it’s hard for a child to accept their mother being physically familiar with their father, imagine how much harder it is for them to see a parent being intimate with someone who is not their mum or dad. Add to that the fact that both you and your partner have suffered bereavement. If your daughter hasn’t seen you with another man since your husband died, it becomes much easier to understand why she finds it hard to ‘cope’ with your closeness to your new partner. alone after my husband died and thought I would never have sex again. Then, aged 72, I met my wonderful shamballa bead bracelet partner (a widower) and have fallen in love again like a teenager – but the rest of the world seems less are very tactile and strangers have muttered abuse when we kiss. My partner’s children roll their eyes, and when I’ve tried to talk to my daughter about my love life (having listened to her romantic problems for years) she says she ‘can’t cope’.

Why are people so hostile to older lovers?Found love again: A 72-year-old reader is delighted with her new relationship, but her friends and family aren’t so happy (posed by models)Do I think our society is ageist about love? Absolutely. We’re told ‘all the world loves a lover’, but that doesn’t ring true if the courting couples are 60-plus and don’t restrict their PDAs (public displays of affection) to holding hands.Her first husband was a repressed man, so she felt free to experiment in bed only after her divorce, with a man she met online. Social networking has revolutionised dating for all age groups and it’s the silver surfers who feel most liberated by the new possibilities. Having said that, it’s important to say those people whose libido has diminished with age should feel free to live life at a gentler pace. The point about growing older is you finally have the confidence to make bold choices.

Finally, I want to say how thrilled I am that you have found love again. Your story is a timely reminder that there is no age limit to falling in love and feeling passion. Just remember in your bliss to be sensitive about the fact your families need time to adjust to the new landscape. When they have, I am sure they will share your joy.Having said that, perhaps you are being overly demonstrative for most people’s tastes? Love makes people blind and you might be overstepping the usual boundaries without realising it. You say you feel ‘like a teenager’. I can’t help wondering if that extends to being oblivious to other people’s feelings? Teens often ignore the fact you don’t want them sticking their tongues down their boyfriend’s throat when you are opposite them on a train. I’m no prude, but I’m not keen on people of any age chewing off each other’s faces near children’s distaste for your physical closeness to your partner is also hardly unusual. Most offspring are disdainful about any smooching on behalf of their parents. When one friend sat on her husband’s knee in the kitchen and pecked him on the lips, her 13-year-old daughter said: ‘Stop doing that – it’s disgusting. I can’t bring my friends home if you behave like that’.Your daughter’s reluctance to discuss your partner is, on the face of things, unfair, but not unusual. She wants you to be her mum, not a girlfriend and confidante. You’d be better respecting her wishes.I want to make one thing clear: no one is telling you not to celebrate the wonder of falling in love again; just consider being less demonstrative in front of your family. Holding hands and a fond peck on the lips is the limit. If your behaviour has been limited to that sort of inoffensive caress, then I am very sorry you have faced such widespread censoriousness. The only way to counter such prejudice is by keeping your head held high and continuing to behave fondly. The UK’s pension-age demographic is expanding and it’s important to recognise it’s commonplace for over-60s to have an active sex life.I was talking to a friend’s 73-year-old mother the other day and she said she had the most sexually fulfilling relationship of her life in her late 60s.The young can be particularly scathing about older sweethearts, believing they have an exclusive entitlement to erotic love. One fortysomething married couple I know were recently in the back row at the cinema and enjoyed a passionate kiss halfway through the film. they said our Blind Date marriage would never last! Couple who met on Cilla Black’s show celebrate 20-year anniversary The teenagers sitting in front of them whispered loudly: ‘Yuck, old people snogging. That is so gross.’ Unsurprisingly, there’s even less tolerance to people in their 70s and 80s who have the temerity to kiss. There’s a misconceived cultural prejudice which leads some people to think pensioners who have sex are behaving inappropriately.

December 7, 2021 | youngandcatholic

Falling Out of Love

Falling in Love is important and an art form, but sometimes, we also need to learn how to fall out of love. Be it a hurtful relationship we have to leave or being stuck in love with somebody, who we are not together with anymore, unable to get it over it. It happens to most of us at some point in time, that is why I want to share with you a process designed by Richard Bandler, one of the founders of NLP.1. Think of the person that you want to fall out of love with. 2. Remember all the good memories about being with them by seeing yourself in the memories. See the movies run backwards and make them all in black and white and small. 3. Remember all the times they treated you badly and all the negative feelings around them by imagining yourself looking at them inside the image, fully associated to what has happened. 4.

Take every bad thing they did and imagine all of them, one after another as if played back to back on a movie screen. Run this movie over and over until you get sick of it. 5. Take something that is disgusting to you and then move the image of the person into the submodalities of the disgusting image, e.g. if you hate the look and smell of mushrooms, get a plate of it, take in the look and smell and open up a picture of that person over and over again. 6. Imagine a wonderful future free of them and imagine yourself being happy and free and step into that image.It is key, to not only see the pictures, but also hear and feel what is happening.If you are not sure it worked, do it several times. It is like learning to ride a bicycle, initially, you cannot drive perfectly, but soon you’ll get it.Good riddance! ???

November 1, 2021 | youngandcatholic

We All Love Hugs!

Don’t we all love a good, tight, squeezy hug now and then! I mean let’s face it: everyone needs a hug. So, yes hugs are clearly awesome! So, awesome that even animals like to hug it out now and then!I guess it’s something about the feeling that goes with it that makes our day happier and makes us feel fuzzy inside.For the record many studies show that hugging is healthy and that all we need to be “happy”are 8 hugs per day.It’s a general fact that people who hug each other and hold hands with a significant other are more relaxed and feel better.

So, people spread the love of hugging!Here are some fun facts about hugs: desire to feel close to others and hugs make us feel close.18. Hugs are great reassurance before going our separate ways.19. Hugging opens our heart letting us go and letting the love flow.20. And here is a funny one: Hugs are dryer than most kisses and don’t leave lipstick stains. :)Also did you know that hugging:helps the body’s immune system.cures depression.reduces stress.induces sleep.revitalize.And I guess the same goes for animals, too!

October 10, 2021 | youngandcatholic

Love Relationship Advice

How to discover the love relationship which you never want to leave? And if you finds, then how to know that is it love or just an attraction? Some people are not comfortable to communicate their liking for someone. Then how, they can get to connect with their beloved? If you are also dealing with the same problem then it’s not a big reason of worry. These questions always move around in an affiliation and can be answered with a relationship advice.Sometimes, at teenage, they don’t know exactly, what love is. They felt instant attraction towards a cute face and feel that they are in love but it is not essential. It can be just appeal of that case. A relationship advice may be helpful for them who find themselves in this type of confusing situation. Young age is the most fragile time of love life, in which teens can move to a dangerous point if they are not properly guide with an advice by experts. There are some key points, which can help to find out the difference between love and affection. If you have just an attraction, then you will be appeal with the same feeling when you see another charming look and if it more than the affection then you will not wait and rush to make a link with that face.

Teens don’t know the maturity of a connection and they think that their attraction is their love and if they failed to get their friendliness then their life lead to depression. On the other hand if they get their affection, they don’t know how to treat them. In this case, what’s bad to take some advice?How to know your liking for someone? The best way to know the answer is jealousy. This is the proof of someone’s care for his beloved but this could also be the failure of a link because it is the issue of trust. Jealousy can be the reason for blaming a person by lover, which can trouble their relation. In these situations, professionals can help you with their sensible suggestions.Honesty is major pole of connection between two persons. If you are not truthful to your partner then you cannot survive in your bond for long time.

Another thing that matters a lot to make a link stronger is trust. We are not saying you to trust your person blindly but don’t often doubts on him/her. A relationship advice from experts will always guide you to be loyal to your relation.Some more queries that may arrives in someone’s mind, like:??? What a lover expects from his partner???? How to get your beloved back???? How to keep a bond healthy for a lifetime???? How to sort out the troubles in a relation or how to save it?These are several more questions that can hit someone’s mind which may put a link in trouble and they can get them answered with some following some rules and healthy relationship advice.