Romantic love is a kind of preamble to the real thing

It is always shattering when romance begins to fade and problems mar our fantasy of perfect bliss.
But the days of romantic love are always numbered; this is nature’s design. 

Romantic love delivers an important message:
if you can figure out what it is that your partner secretly needs, the two of you can feel like this forever. 

In a way, romantic love is a kind of preamble to the real thing,
a foretaste of what you will experience
when you have negotiated the mine field of the power struggle and come out into the clearing of real love.

The passion of romantic love is based on fantasy and fueled by expectation,
whereas the passion in a conscious relationship is rooted in our memories of our healing experience with our partners. 

Romantic love is a time bomb; sooner or later, the explosion comes. 
But this is a part of the overall process.
The end of romantic love heralds the beginning of deeper spiritual evolution.

…Loving the Reality of my partner is the door to my own spiritual awakening.

(I would say *A* door, but whatever ; )
This is my favorite page, so far, in this wonderful book, I am slowly reading through:

Couples Companion: Meditations & Exercises for Getting the Love You Want: A Workbook for Couples by Harville Hendrix & Helen Hunt

I have been a big fan of the Imago work by these folks for decades. 
Imago has given me great insight and practices in my intimate relationships.