Heroic Love

Well it's Valentine's Day. I was thinking about some of my favorite love stories and why they are my favorite. Here are some of my favorites, in no particular order of preference.

Moulin Rouge
Love, Actually
Pride and Prejudice
Much Ado About Nothing
Some Kind of Wonderful
When Harry Met Sally

The thing all good love stories have in common is that you are left right up to the end not knowing whether or not the two people who should be together will actually end up that way. There are obstacles to overcome, usually they seem to be insurmountable obstacles of their own making. In the end love triumphs over everything else and the couple ends up at the beginning of their "happily ever after".

It's sort of a heroic thing to fall in love, get married and stay happily married. It is a thing that requires thinking about someone else most of the time and knowing that your own happiness is directly related to the happiness of the other person.

My great grandparents met on the day they were married and managed, despite a host of differences to stay married and raise four children. My grandparents eloped when they were 18 years old, against the wishes of their parents. They were deeply in love for all of the nearly 65 years they were married. My own parents have managed to stay happily married for almost 41 years despite significant differences and trials, not the least of which was raising their oldest child. I am happy to have such a rich family history of love and I hope to pass it on to my children.

I met my husband while in college. We first met in April of 1994 and we became friends. By October of that same year we decided to go on a real date. We got engaged in November and married in December over winter break. So far, so great!


Happy Valentine's Day.

Here's a happy ending from W. Shakespeare.