I read this essay around Valentine's Day and thought there could be no sweeter or sadder tribute from a woman to the man she loves. While Jason may and (still might be) all the things his wife of 26 years says about him, it is also true that he is the product of their love made from the bonds between the two of them at first and then between them and their children. He perfection exists in the mesh of support created by the ties that bind this family together. It is not to say that this man is not amazing on his own, but I imagine he will manifest himself differently with another woman, another context and another life. We are blinded by love as we should be and the person we love is imbued with perfection we bestow on them.
Sometimes we help them be their best selves because they feel so loved they want to exceed expectations. So it is a two way street- to love and be loved back in return, not in a quid pro way but because it feels so wonderful. Doing things for the one you love is a almost a selfish act - it is more about what it does for the doer than for the one it is done for. And we are fundamentally selfish creatures. Those of us like Jason have also been fortunate enough to stumble upon love can act out their selfishness all day long and come out looking all around fantastic to the one they love. That is probably the story of this couple. It was a wonderful, bitter-sweet read that stayed on my mind for weeks after I first read it.
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