Suppose I had a friend named Anderson; a take-it-head-on kind of girl. Tough, strong-willed, somewhat masculine, yet forgiving and soft at the core. Nobody dares mess with her and lives to tell the tale (or so she told me). Safety nets are pathetic; perfection is all she aims for. Her direction in life is unquestionable. If life is a beach, she's bound to make quite a mark in the sand. I've come to know her for quite some time now. Those little, clockwise circles her pupils run when she gets annoyed, those snarky comments she takes back with a laugh, her awkward tendency to have her hair cut even shorter under stress, and her fucked up crushes over older men just because they're articulate; binging on food and what not over them... how long has it been, Andy? A couple of years? Maybe three? I'm not one to mind dates seriously; you know that, don't ya? In knowing a person, I have found time to be irrelevant.
Suppose a stranger shows up one day; one quick to build rapport, one who's charming, energetic, and heavily emotional. The weather should be a fitting image of her. Like the clouds, she's sometimes stretched out and secure, but some other times hiding behind mountains, as if brewing up a storm. When she's second of the two, it rains down destruction by form of words. A thousand volts, striking in the most unlikely places. Disintegrating all in their path--relentless, unstoppable. But every so often, a rainbow stretches its arms out to the sky, reminding how strong a soul stayed from the downpour. There is only little I know about the weather. Like a man confused, it does what it pleases or conforms to whatever stage in cycle it's in. I'll dare not form an opinion about the weather or her. But for the mean time, I'll call her Blush.
These two characters are now in love. Andy's first fall. A bittersweet surprise it is.
If there is anything constant in the universe (aside the eternal existence of irritating paradoxes), it's change. But Andy's recent changes have been poetic. She no longer cares that much about grades anymore, let alone schoolwork. She's been carefree, putting her well-formed image towards her parents on the line for secret dates and hangouts. She spends a lot of money all the sudden for comfort food. But she's now sweeter and positive. She gives hugs for free which were slaps and pinches before, she smiles at the simplest act of kindness which were before met by a that-ain't-good-enough face, and the way she takes leadership is the type that haves you liking to join her group, not the commanding, I'll-think-twice-before-getting-involved-in-this-one type we all know abounds everywhere today. In the direction things were going, I was all for the relationship--that was until last Thursday. Andy was acting kind of funny; smiling teary-eyed and whimsical like she's in high school. I was on a laptop when she came over and lowered her head for a hug. Then I heard her sobbing in my arms. Silently at first, then it slowly grew audible. Right that instant, I know our friends are already against Blush. Thinking back, she was quite the toughie. No trace of unguarded emotion is found in her. Now, she's in tears. Forcing herself to breath on my shoulders. "Just what has Blush done to this girl? What brought her to this?" I thought. Not more than 10 minutes later, she was back working things out for Blush over the phone. Andy twice asked me for advice, I joked my way out of it. My friends are still asking about my opinion on Blush and yes, I am still joking to an exit.
"Love moron-izes people," I once heard a friend say. I beg to differ. I think, there are no universal truths when it comes to people. We are all different. That's why unity is such a struggle to achieve. Love, like rum and tonic, affect different kinds of people in different ways. But I've observed that its most common effect is instilling a deep sense of caution. Love is more than pain's neighbor; they live together. It's a fact; we all know that. Andy has just learned one of her first lessons. And believe me, it's bound to get worse. Before she knows it, she'll have to hang her pillow out to dry of tears. She'll feel abandoned, empty, distressed, uncertain, terrified, and heartbroken to an unimaginable degree sometime in the future. Andy, I sure hope you braced yourself. Nobody leaves unscathed.
"Boy, what a pessimist."--was that you I overheard? You have it all wrong. Andy needs to feel all these so she knows what to avoid doing in her next relationship (or in this one for that matter). They would also teach her the kind of lovers to blow off and accept. Think of these emotions as lessons. Painful, heavy, and difficult lessons you won't find in a textbook anywhere. Lessons you can't learn with your head. So as for Andy and Blush, I'm in support of their relationship. What more can Andy ask for? She has Blush to teach her the lessons of the real-world and she loves her more than anything. Not to mention Blush sorta has deep pockets too. Hah! More goodies for us friends. Seriously though. I hope Andy doesn't let Blush make her hard and numb. Pain can either act like a fire that purifies you like gold or turns you to embers like firewood. That's why love brings out the best or the worst in people (besides that inner poet in you.)
I see love as a rebirth into an alternate dimension which always existed, it's just we were absent to it; It's kind of like The Matrix. We love, we hurt, then we come to understand. It's experience acting like a crayon; Coloring the void, allowing us to make ourselves. It is, after all, the best of teachers. And after this experience, it's likely Andy would find most of her friends nodding their heads to an I told you so. But as for me, I'd congratulate her for making it through.
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