RELATIONSHIPS: A DIALOGUE

I wrote the following dialogue based on an actual conversation I had with a high school freshman seeking romantic advice.

(Older character to a high school youth who asks about how to keep a relationship going over time, after wondering if a rough spot means its time to let it go.)

OLDER: Have you ever started a fire?

YOUNGER: Yeah. A camp fire.

OLDER: And when it was burning, did you sit back and let it go out?

YOUNGER: No.

OLDER: Why not?

YOUNGER: Duh. We were making a fire. You want it to get bigger.

OLDER: How'd you do that?

YOUNGER: We blew on it and added more wood and stuff.

OLDER: Did you leave after that to do something else, or did you stay to keep an eye on it?

YOUNGER: You don't leave fire unattended.

OLDER: So you added wood and then you sat and let it go out?

YOUNGER: No. You have to keep putting wood on. Move them around in case is starts going out. You get more sticks and branches from the forest. You make sure there's air flow underneath so it burns better. Stuff like that.

OLDER: Then you've answered your own question.

MJW