'When you know, you know...' So, when did *you* know?

Hello, lovelies! Come join me on an existential crisis I am currently experiencing :D

Well, not exactly, but I have spent the last few weeks thinking about a little thing called

Also before I continue, I just want you to know that the following gif appeared in my search for 'love' in the GIF box:

Anyway, back to my age old question of 'love at first sight' vs. gradual love. Which actually works?

A vast majority of successful and happy couples/married couples I know say they just knew when they first laid eyes on each other that the other person was the one. It sounds like something that goes beyond physical attraction, and more sensing that someone is right for you (I'm assuming you take into account how you two interact with one another when you first meet/lock eyes, and how natural that all feels). In my personal experience, I sensed from the moment I started speaking with my former partner that there was something there, like a little flicker of magic that grew pretty fast. I knew half way through the second date that I really, really liked him, and it didn't feel like anything I had experienced with anyone else before. Sadly, that relationship had to come to an end and it was for the better, and though that was a bit of a 'love at first sight' situation, the relationship didn't last. Neither did the relationships my friends or family members had, who also believed they all experienced love at first sight.

And then there are people you get along with and have things in common with, even people you are able to talk things through with, yet something is missing. I'm seeing someone at the moment and we're both on the same wavelength about things, and we joked about how if we were members of royalty who got married and had to stay married to each other (i.e. a Queen Elizabeth/Prince Phillip situation), we'd be one of the fortunate ones who would make it work and probably end up being very happy together and committed to one another. So naturally, that conversation confused the hell out of me. Is this kind of man husband material? Is simply wanting to be committed the answer? I know there are countless situations where that has not worked, but if I were to delve deeper into all the probabilities of what can and can't happen, this will end up being a thesis.

So, in a tinder-fuelled, 'wham bam thank you ma'am' age like this, how does one keep romance alive? Does it just happen? And what works, or makes your heart twerk? What is your experience?

Discuss :3