"I Still Think Of Her Daily": Older Adults Are Sharing If They Still Have Feelings For "The One Who Got Away"

Whether it's idiosyncratic you had a crush connected but ne'er pursued oregon idiosyncratic you utilized to beryllium successful a narration with, galore of america inactive harbor concealed feelings for "the 1 that got away." Recently, u/correct-cycle5412 asked older adults connected Reddit to stock however their feelings astir that elusive mislaid emotion person changed implicit the years, and their responses scope from heartwarming to heartbreaking. Here's what they had to say:

1. "I joined the 1 who got distant implicit 20 years later. No, I ne'er mislaid feelings."

2. "When I recovered retired she was connected her 3rd matrimony and inactive surviving the beingness of daddy's girl, I mislaid those feelings."

—u/fabergrad

3. "The 1 I genuinely wanted died past October, 2 weeks shy of our 35th anniversary. As I look backmost connected my life, I can’t assistance but consciousness truthful incredibly blessed. All my dreams came existent successful truthful galore areas of my life. Mind you, the tragedies person been big, too, but those I mislaid excessively soon (my lad and husband) volition beryllium waiting for maine astatine the pearly gates."

—u/aware_cartoonist_894

4. "My archetypal emotion precocious got backmost successful interaction with maine implicit societal media, and I drew a choky bound — basically, I'll spot what she's up to occasionally, but each we said was 'hope you're doing well' to 1 different and I've near it astatine that. That's precisely due to the fact that it did permission a people connected me, but I'm present happily joined to a pistillate I emotion successful a deeper, much profound mode than I ever understood was imaginable arsenic a young man."

5. "I spent implicit 40 years pining for the 1 that got away. One day, I started reasoning astir however miserably he’d treated maine and however upset and stressed I was erstwhile we were together. Just an atrocious situation. I realized that helium wasn’t truly the 1 who got distant but the 1 that I wisely walked distant from. Thank goodness I did."

—u/junebug1923

6. "It’s been 25 years. We ne'er had closure. I’m present happily joined with an astonishing child. But I volition ever wonder, 'What if.' However, I effort to punctual myself that I’m successful emotion with a memory. That idiosyncratic doesn’t beryllium anymore."

—u/danedaffodil

7. "Fifty years later, happily joined with kids and grandkids, I inactive deliberation of her astir daily. A bittersweet longing that I volition person until the end."

8. "I inactive deliberation of him from clip to time, adjacent successful my dreams. In dreams, we're the aforesaid property arsenic we were erstwhile we met, alternatively than our existent age. It's mostly astir sex. No 1 since has known my assemblage the mode helium did."

—u/enlargedbit371

9. "I was young. The narration was excessively perfect. We had excessively galore things successful common. I became paranoid astir his chivalry. I thought his loving gestures were a signifier of control. He was conscionable a gentleman. After I broke up with him, helium closed his North American bureau and returned home. Years later, we met backmost up erstwhile his nephew was touring my university. I conscionable looked up, and helium was lasting astatine my bureau doorway with that aforesaid shy smile."

"He's divorced and inactive the cleanable gentleman. I'm married. We've remained nonrecreational friends and often consult with 1 different connected projects."

—u/no_practice_970

10. "It's been years now, and I'm perpetually, chronically azygous due to the fact that of it all. I can't day anyone due to the fact that each I bash is look for her wrong them. And cipher deserves to beryllium stuck with a miserable, broken-hearted, hopeless romanticist similar me."

11. "I won't accidental she was the 1 who got away, but I was progressive with idiosyncratic galore years ago, and the question of matrimony was there, but determination were obstacles that couldn't beryllium overcome. I called her galore years aboriginal to convey her for thing that helped maine amended my life. I recovered that she was a hardcore MAGA, and that enactment an extremity to immoderate residual feelings."

—u/saltybardog

12. "The feelings change, but some of the 'ones who got away' inactive person a fond spot successful my heart. We parted connected bully presumption successful some cases, but it was a substance of incorrect spot and incorrect time. I’m decades distant from the clip we spent together, but I privation them well, and connected the uncommon juncture erstwhile I tally into either of them, I’m genuinely gladsome to spot them with nary consciousness of regret. My beingness is good, and I’m gladsome to cognize theirs are arsenic well."

—u/weirdbogwitch

13. "We were unneurotic successful the aboriginal 1980s, past broke up, and we wholly mislaid interaction good earlier the decennary was over. I googled her sanction astir 2 years agone to spot what I could find retired astir her, and the archetypal nexus was her obituary. I went into a mild daze for a time oregon two."

14. "After 35 years of being joined to the aforesaid woman, I don't adjacent truly callback the names of the ones who got distant (or that I got distant from), overmuch little person feelings for them."

—u/vauss88

15. "We've remained friends implicit the past 35 years, mostly connected societal media present arsenic helium moved distant years ago. We were young and anserine and ne'er truly single/available astatine the aforesaid clip the different 1 was. We decidedly inactive profoundly attraction for and emotion 1 another, but we don't transverse immoderate lines, adjacent successful messaging 1 another."

"I've been joined for 22 years, and erstwhile my hubby astir died successful ICU past November (he is not well), my caput went to 'what if?' My ex has been azygous for 15 years now. My hubby said helium wants maine to beryllium blessed if thing happens to him, but I can't ideate surviving without him. I consciousness precise fortunate to person had 2 large loves successful my life. I cognize galore radical who person ne'er adjacent had one."

—u/kbela77

16. "I convey God for unanswered prayers. I wouldn’t person my woman of 25 years if I had what I thought I wanted decades ago."

17. "I ne'er thought I would accidental this, but astatine 72, I was inactive successful emotion with my archetypal love."

—u/llkahl

18. "I dated excavation successful my aboriginal 20s, and now, astatine 49 and successful a blessed and loving narration with idiosyncratic else, I inactive deliberation astir him. We really inactive support successful interaction and person for 20+ years. We’ve agreed to ne'er really conscionable successful person, though. That would beryllium a atrocious idea."

—u/realhausfrau

19. "He gets to stay an perfect due to the fact that we ne'er argued implicit the dishes successful the descend oregon however to subject the kids oregon wherever to chopped backmost connected spending — discussions radical successful imperishable relationships have. I thought of excavation for galore years, but I yet realized helium had mentally stayed successful his 20s. I wouldn’t person wanted that for myself oregon my kids."

20. "In my experience, astatine least, each genuinely important narration changed maine a small bit. Every pistillate that I loved near a people connected my heart, and those feelings NEVER precisely spell away, BUT they did alteration successful strength implicit time, and I did get implicit them. Personally, I judge they are determination to assistance maine support myself successful aboriginal relationships and assistance maine beryllium a amended spouse to my wife."

—u/bigdougsp

21. "I consciousness truthful fortunate that helium got away. I was wholly infatuated with him. In my head, I transformed everything helium said and did into genius. He was incredibly handsome, though. By chance, years later, I went to the taping of a cheesy TV amusement with my husband, and that feline was the warmup act. My hubby commented connected however shallow and anserine the feline seemed. I said thing astir the past and I conscionable couldn’t spot what I saw successful him before."

—u/muscs

22. "I got different accidental 10 years later. She is presently successful the room making coffee."

23. "It's been 14 years, and clearly, he's not coming back. I inactive miss him each azygous day. I conscionable unrecorded astir it."

—u/wish4111

24. "If it was a bully narration for you both, you'd inactive beryllium successful it. Of the ones I pined for implicit the years, 1 turned into a hard-core fundamentalist Christian who belittles anyone antithetic from him and moved to a distant determination to get distant from the influences of 'evil' society. The different became a rage-filled alcoholic who yet couldn't clasp down a occupation and changeable his wife, sidesplitting her, for wanting a divorce. Yeah. I had been hung up connected fantasy, not reality."

"The 1 that truly wounded was the 1 I gave up due to the fact that we wanted precise antithetic things retired of life. I had to take betwixt him and the antheral I ended up marrying. I made the close choice, but I ne'er discontinue regretting that I had to take astatine all. Both helium and my hubby are dormant now, and successful a way, I got to support them both. I would've fallen retired of emotion with the archetypal feline precise rapidly due to the fact that we were connected antithetic trajectories, and successful the process, I would've missed retired connected 28 fantastic years with the antheral I married.

So beryllium cautious with the narration nostalgia. Time mightiness amusement you that it was for the champion aft all."

—u/nakedonmygoat

25. "There is 1 peculiar narration from 35 years agone that has stayed with me. He wasn't my archetypal love, and surely not my last, but helium was the champion of my life. There are songs we listened to (on a premix portion then, connected CDs now) that I inactive can't perceive without tearing up. Recently, 1 of those songs played connected the vigor connected an oldies presumption erstwhile I was astatine a peculiarly susceptible point, and I had to propulsion disconnected the roadworthy and person a bully cry."

26. "I’ve ne'er mislaid feelings for the emotion of my life. We were young, and helium near me. We are opposites successful galore ways. We went connected and had relationships with different people. None of them worked retired for either of us. We’ve stayed successful interaction astir each of that time. We present talk each day. He is ever determination for maine successful a jam. I conjecture we some cognize it couldn’t work, but there’s inactive a batch of emotion betwixt us. Sometimes, thing is amended than nothing. I couldn’t person him arsenic a lover, but I could person him arsenic a friend."

—u/dridibits

27. "My hubby considered maine the 1 who got away, truthful helium recovered maine connected Facebook. We'll beryllium joined for 15 years connected New Year's Eve."

—u/twiggyrox

28. "Mine passed distant precise young, property 32, and I was 25. You ne'er get implicit that."

29. And finally, "With age, I've learned that 'the 1 that got away' is not needfully a truism. Along with 'soulmate', 'twin flame' and each that benignant of (what I call) Disney Thinking. I tin look backmost and deliberation of that 1 feline that I privation things had lasted longer, oregon helium had breached up with maine properly, etc., but not with existent regret. Just, 'Well, that could've gone a batch better.' It's perspective, time, and distance."

—u/wildlifepolicychick

Is determination idiosyncratic from your past who you inactive deliberation astir years later? Tell america astir your transportation with them successful the comments!