This is a great article that poses a very good question; what do you think?
"Friendship before dating? It's a new concept to me. Over the years, to many to think about, I have literally gone from one relationship to another. I have always been of the opinion that as one door closes, another one opens. Now after the failure of yet another long term relationship, which has produced 4 lovely children, which I love dearly, I have taken a huge step back and looked at where I was going wrong. Although my parents have been divorced for 10 years, I always remember my father telling me that my mum was his best friend. Did that friendship develop as the relationship grew? I wish I had the fore-sight to ask my father instead of blundering my way through relationship after relationship, finding out that my partner and I wanted different things and had a different out-look on life.
Now, having moved a long way from home, I am seeing some-one who I have known for 2 years as a friend. That friendship has grown, to the point where we have developed very strong feelings of love for each other. We both know that there is potential for a really close, strong, loving relationship, based on the foundations we laid down during our friendship, respect, trust, the ability to read each other and the open-ness and companionship we have...."
http://www.helium.com/items/1694205-friendship-first-or-jump-into-a-relationship
Source: helium.com