The Light of My Life

Photo by Rich Tervet on Unsplash

The opinions reflected in this humor piece are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the opinions of staff, faculty and students of The King's College.

(HUMOR) In fairy tales, we are frequently regaled with rose-tinted tales of “love at first sight.” Eyes are locked, and both parties immediately know that it was meant to be. This is the myth of true love, and like most myths, its real-life counterpart is a burning trash heap of agonizing and endless pain. 

Real love is not nearly as convenient as fairy book love. Why on earth would it be? There is no easy out for the painful twists of a real relationship. And yet it is those pains that define true love. At its core, love is a conscious choice. A choice to accept someone despite their flaws and imperfections because deep down, you really care about them as a person. 

Not all love is meant to be, however. All too often, a romance is started foolishly– the young lovers too starry-eyed to recognize that their differences are irreconcilable and their interests too vastly unrelated. This short and wild ride ends in heartbreak and is all too common among young Americans of college age.

My first romance was of this sort. It started at the beginning of the fall semester of 2019. I had just moved to New York to begin college, and my heart was afire with the possibilities this new independent life afforded me. 

At Target, across the street from my apartment, I first ran into her. I still remember the intense rush I felt when I first laid eyes on her. My heart began beating uncontrollably as my mouth ran utterly dry. I was overwhelmed with a flood of emotions I was unable to process. Her form was perfect, she was brimming with personality and her shade was positively ravishing. She was, by far, the most beautiful desk lamp I had ever seen, and I immediately became infatuated with her. 

Unfortunately, through some fluke, my apartment had come furnished without a desk in my room, so I could not purchase her until one was delivered – a process I was told could take up to two weeks. I visited her often those days. I could spend hours lost in her stylish post-modern minimalism. I would whisper sweet nothings to her in a fashion that seems romantic on paper but, as often as not, ended in my being escorted out by an irate employee – and no, I could not see her again tomorrow unless I was willing to actually purchase something. 

This was but a mild deterrent for me. I had fallen madly in love and could only see the light that was her 300-Watt halogen bulb. Young love is like that: reckless, emotional and utterly devoid of thought and reason. I would liken it to a bubble, if you will. A perfect system of swirling beauty and emotion, utterly isolated from harsh reality.

The bubble must eventually pop, however – it is inevitable that it will. So too did my rose-tinted glasses fade and in a remarkably timely manner. The day I had planned to “seal the deal” with a proposal to bring her home. 

The cultural difference was the initial shock of reality. She carried a hefty dowry of $79.99, well beyond any other furnishing I had ever loved. As I grappled with this problematic shock, it all began to unravel around me. Her aesthetic had nothing in common with the homely southern décor of my apartment. Her fluorescent brightness must eventually cause many aches for my sensitive eyes, and she made an uncomfortable buzzing noise when in operation. Everything came crashing down at once, and I saw our relationship for what it was– hopeless romanticism. That is not to say our relationship ended on bad terms. I still appreciate her for what she is. But I now recognize that she was not right for me. 

Emotion is an important and powerful part of love – the feeling of love is one of the most significant and meaningful parts of a good relationship. However, emotion alone does not a relationship make. It is all too easy to get drunk on an emotional high and mistake that fleeting feeling of attraction in your heart for true love. 

Love based purely on an emotional response is worth little more than a whim or a craving. True love is not merely an emotional feeling but a rational choice. Love is ultimately meaningless unless you go out of your way to give it value.

Joshua Story is the Humor Columnist for the Empire State Tribune. He is a junior studying Journalism, Culture and Society.