By January Nelson Updated January 7, 2021

Joel Sossa

There are two kinds of people in our lives: those who come to us as teachers, and those who come to us as soul mates. The former are the tumultuous relationships that are painful, but teach us a lot. The latter are our lifelong friends, romantic partners, close family members. So much of our misery within relationships comes from confusing the two – usually trying to make a teacher into a soul mate, to be honest. Here are a few ways to tell the difference between the people who are meant to be with you and the people who are meant to teach you something.