Love Is Everything It’s Cracked Up to Be

“Love is everything it’s cracked up to be. That’s why people are so cynical about it. It really is worth fighting for, being brave for, risking everything for. And the trouble is, if you don’t risk everything, you risk even more.” – Erica Jong

My husband Bill and I started our run from the local rec center on Monday. We had done a 5K race on Saturday then rested on Sunday, so our legs were fresh. We knew we had only about half an hour before the beginning of the Body Pump class I wanted to attend and we hoped to run at least three miles.

That deadline must have been in our minds, because the pace of our run was more typical of the speedy runs of five years ago, rather than our more sedate current pace. After our quick three-plus-mile run, I did an hour of strength training, then we came home to the mountain of mulch in our driveway.

Every year around this time we have a mulch-tastic mulchfest.  In case you cannot see the sarcasm dripping off these words, let me elaborate: we both detest mulching with a white-hot passion.

And yet, every year we wind up spending thousands of hours (OK, that may be a slight exaggeration) of our beautiful spring days weeding, edging, trimming, and mulching.

I recently talked to a friend who has had enough mulching for one lifetime and now pays someone else to do it for her. Her yard and flower beds are about half the size of ours. “May I ask how much it costs?” I queried. Her response made me much more fond of mulching – over $2,000.

 

This is the best our house and yard will look all year.

 

Maybe it is because we are now both retired and the pressure to complete the mulching extravaganza in one weekend is no longer there, and maybe it is because we are not actually finished with the chore, but mulchfest has actually not been too bad this year.

Usually, our mulching party is punctuated by screaming, tantrums, stomping, threats, and bad words, and that’s just me! This year, Bill and I are working in harmony, taking time to admire our efforts, and even celebrating the end of a good mulching day (if there really is such a thing) with an impromptu happy hour for two, complete with snacks.

I like to think that our more relaxed attitude toward mulchfest is the result of our long history together.

Eventually, if you are very lucky, you reach a point in a relationship where petty battles just don’t feel like they are worth fighting any longer. You become each other’s protector, champion, and best friend. You ultimately want what is best for your partner and you willingly swallow a big portion of your pride rather than create a disturbance in the harmony that develops.

If you are fortunate enough to be in a relationship with someone who knows you even better than you know yourself and loves you anyway, you will seek out your partner’s hand during the night, and, finding it, feel the peace necessary for you to finally drift off to sleep. Locating that particular hand in the dark is like finding water when you are parched, like air when you are gasping for breath.

There are as many kinds of love as there are people; no two loves are alike. Each species of love matches the unique circumstances of those who love.

The fit of your love may not be perfect at first. You may have to tug, stretch, and wear your love into a shape comfortable for you. It may take years. You may get impatient. Don’t. A well-fitting love is worth the wait.

Love, finally, is best served hot rather than lukewarm. Tepid love is almost as bad as no love at all. Love should make your heart flutter and your eyes dance. To love is to risk everything, to risk your self.

We should be willing to knock over fences, break down doors, and arrive, breathless and panting, eager to give everything for those whom we love. Love takes courage, it takes mettle, pluck and nerve. It is not for the easily intimidated. You must be all in.

When you love, there is always the chance that your heart will get trampled and your ego pummeled, but loving and being loved in return is worth any risk; it is the ultimate reward.

Love, the ultimate reflection of Love, like any reflected light, shines silvery and lambent on a twilight world, hungry for illumination. It makes our days and nights glow with warm radiance.

Love is all-encompassing, all-consuming, and exhilarating, but we must be practical. There are other important items to consider in life besides love. Not every day can be all about love; some days we have to mulch.

“Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud. It does not dishonor others, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps no record of wrongs.” 1 Corinthians 13:4-5

 

I am linking up with Fairytales and Fitness for Friday 5, Raisie Bay for Word of the Week, Crystal Twaddell for Fresh Market Friday, Susan B Mead for Dancing With Jesus, Embracing the Unexpected for Grace and Truth, Counting My Blessings for Faith ‘n Friends, Purposeful Faith for RaRa, Shank You Very Much for Dream Team, Mary Geisen Tell His Story, Bethere2day for Wordless Wednesday, and Morgan’s Milieu for Post, Comment, Love.