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| Photo by: findingthenow |
From Denise: The "Love Found Me" series continues with a post from my friend, Tim Gallen. I had the opportunity to connect with Tim for the first time last year and have gotten to know him through an online writing community. He is a talented writer, especially where fiction is concerned, and I'm honored to have him as my guest this week!
When I was born, I spent my first few
days of life in intensive care. As my parents always tell it, something was
wrong, but after several days they never figured out what it was.
Nearly 30 years later - and despite
what others might consider to be off about me - I’m confident the condition
that went undiagnosed was a misplaced heart.
You see, my heart’s never really been
under my left breast. Rather, I entered the world with my heart on my sleeve.
No wonder I’m a lifelong hopeless
romantic.
Until I met her, I dwelled a goodly amount of time on finding the love of my life.
But the thing is, the harder I tried the farther I got from finding love. Not that I tried that hard, mind you. I was no smooth operator when it came to the ladies. I am shy, odd, nerdy, and not always good at small talk. But I tried, with limited success.
But it wasn’t until I essentially gave up looking that the woman I had been hoping for fell into my lap. Or, more accurately, my inbox.
Love found me surfing the Internet. And I've never been happier.
Have you ever seen one of those eHarmony commercials where the man and woman take turns talking about the other? That could be the story of my life. My wife and I met on eHarmony.
We connected over my passion for dental hygiene.
One of the questions on eHarmony’s profile asks to name three things you are passionate about. Honestly, I don’t remember the first two, other than that they were serious things. But for the third one, I wrote that I was passionate about brushing my teeth.
When my wife and I first connected via the dating site, she mentioned that answer had made her laugh.
I've been making her laugh ever since.
This may sound horrible of me, but I don’t recall what specific item from Nicole’s profile or answers entangled me. I think it was more a combination of everything. She entangled me with everything that is her - her passion, love, character, beauty, and faith. Since our first connection, I have found it easy to be myself with her.
Isn't that what love is all about? We spend inordinate amounts of energy to reflect an aura of perfection. We do our best to ensure the world only sees our best face.
But love strips away all the pretentious masks we insist on wearing. Love leaves us naked and vulnerable. Yet, instead of scorn or disdain, love sees us for all we are and embraces and cherishes us anyway.
I am not perfect. Like everyone else, I have flaws and foibles. I make mistakes. But my wife loves me anyway.
Love found me online. And I am so grateful.
How did love find you? Share your story in the comments!
