by Paul Vogt, staff writer

Young love: they say it never lasts. But is that necessarily true? Are the young incapable of being in love?  High school relationships are filled with quick passion followed by devastating heartbreak.

So are relationships in high school worth all the time and effort? The scariest part is that the person you’re in a relationship with you’ll either end up marrying or breaking up with.

Personally, I have not had the best of luck with relationships, so I find them to be a waste of time. Some of you may agree with me, others will disagree, but we can all agree that they are definitely a lot of work. Also, is the aftermath of the relationship worth it? It appears high schools students aren’t mature enough to stay civil with their exs. Too many times have I seen two people, “In love,” become complete strangers days later. Whether that is for better or for worse, it seems wrong to me. Relationships also appear to end for the silliest reasons in high school. “OMG Bobby liked Becky’s photo on Facebook. I hate Becky. Im dumping him.” And just like that, it’s over.

High school relationships also have a lot of “unwritten rules.” Rule 1, you must text your significant other 24/7 otherwise they will assume you’re mad at them. Rule 2, You must spend every possible minute you have with them or they will say “we just don’t see each other enough.” Rule 3 (this one if for the guys), you may not like, favorite, comment, or even look at other girls on social media. It’s basically the equivalent to cheating in a girl’s eyes. No wonder young relationships never last; these rules are easier to break than iphone screens.

Not only do relationships consume time and effort, but they also have the potential to consume friendships. Your significant other will want you to spend more time with them than your friends. One example of this, Will Gamble, senior, claims to be happily single. However, relationships still affect him as he fights for his friends time.

“Sometimes a girlfriend becomes a friends priority. On occasions, I feel like I get blown off by them,” Gamble said. So even though you may be happy in a relationship, it tends to really affect the people around you.

Fortunately, we aren’t hopeless. There are high school relationships that work out. Morgan Newcomb, senior,  has been in a relationship with Reeve Holmquist, senior, for her whole high school career.

“Even though we are boyfriend and girlfriend, were more than that; we’re best friends. He knows me better than I know myself,” said Morgan. They enjoy their relationship because of the security and comfort they feel when they’re together.

“It’s nice to have someone who is always there. He has been with me through everything.”

Everyone has their own view on relationships. Mr. Katzenmeyer, mathematics, has been at Hopkins long enough to see every type of high school relationship.

“High School is about exploring likes and dislikes. It’s good to have guided experiences so when you go off on your own you can decide what kind of person you are going to be,” said Katzenmeyer. So although they end up tragic most of the time, they are still a good experience.

I will agree, it is good to have experiences before you enter the real world. Even with all the stress and devastation, something good will come out of it all. However, before you decide to get into a relationship with someone, decide if you really like the person or if you only want to change your Facebook relationship status.

And lastly, ladies, I am single and my number is 612-751-4727.