I am a romantic. I want to love someone beyond rationality. I want to love and take care of someone unconditionally, shower him with love from morning to night, be supportive of his goals and interests. The issue with such desires is that you end up giving this big love before it is warranted or natural. At that point, you just become irrational. I suppose that is the trouble with all romantics. We are dreamy and delusional. 

I started swimming when I was 4 years old. I used to love art, I had a way with colours. I used to sing and write songs. I was good at maths and won awards for chemistry. The things I used to be good at, I did not develop those skills and they slowly faded away. Bygones. If only I were my own parent, I would've nurtured my child to pursue all my interests. I would tell my child that it is okay to fail and in fact there is no failing, just experiences that enrich your life. 

Shelving your agenda is a tactic in relationships where you temporarily delay your own needs to meet those of another. We often get into disagreements where both parties want empathy from the other. When someone is in distress, they are in limited capacity to empathise with another. The more emotionally mature party can choose to 'shelve their agenda' and take care of their partner's needs first. It can sound like "I'm really in need of some understanding but I see that you need me to see this situation from your perspective so let's focus on you first, please tell me more about what's bothering you, I'm happy to listen." You then summarise what they are trying to say and check if you heard them right and then ask if there is more. Partners need to listen and understand before they get defensive and try to explain away why they acted the way they did. 

S: But I still love you.
L: So love me.
S: But I miss you.
L: So miss me. Send me love and light every time you think of me... Then drop it. It won't last forever. Nothing does.