[aldaine]

Someone wants to court me, and I really really like him.. should I say yes? But I'm not sure if he is serious.. I don't want to get hurt!

[ylaira]

How long do you know him and this semi-courting going on?

[chakarnis]

That's what courting is all about. Take this time to find out about him. Check him out before you become intimate, start loaning him money, start co-signing for him or letting him drive your car. Those are his problems - not yours. Besides, hat is for married people. Take your time. This way you won't end up on Judge Judy.

[JBeaucaire]

You can't date people as long as you're seriously waving the "I don't want to get hurt" flag around. That's a non-starter.

Dating is painful. Getting close to another person means putting your heart and thoughts and needs up against theirs and feeling the differences. That's a painful process.

You will date many people and will break up with all of them for one reason or another... except the last guy. Probably #5 or #6. It takes a lot of dating and learning and pain to get to #6.

So, date this guy if you want, but you cannot protect yourself much in the process. What's going to happen is what's going to happen.

I say dive in, enjoy the process, enjoy the ride. When it ends, make sure you learned all you could, then dive in again with the next guy.

Live your life unafraid of pain. Pain means you're alive and moving.

[chakarnis]

Getting hurt is not a rule of dating. That is not why people do it. Nobody wants to get hurt, it's true but if you approach anything with any intelligence as opposed to wearing your heart on your sleeve, then it can be very cool. It is a chance to get to know someone to determine if being with this person is what you want. I say take it one step at a time.