04/01/2024
"He always pushes the grocery cart. And when we get back to the truck, he unlocks the doors immediately so I can I sit in the truck with the seat warmers on while he unloads the groceries. Rain or shine, every time, this is our grocery game plan.
Can I let you all in on a little secret? It’s taken me many years to appreciate being loved like this.
You see, I spent (aka wasted) a lot of time looking for all the ways in which love is shown in the movies, magazines, and commercials.
Flowers.
Chocolates.
Romantic meals.
Surprise getaways.
And guess what? I was disappointed time and time and time again. All because I was looking for the ways I was being told my partner should show his love instead of paying attention to how he actually does.
When I came to this realization, it was a relationship game changer.
For he rarely buys flowers, but he calls me every day when he gets off of work to see if I need anything picked up.
He never thinks of buying chocolate, but whenever he sees anything that resembles a slice of plant-based organic goodness, he always buys it for me. And he is always so proud to surprise me with his latest grocery store find.
He can only boil eggs and butter bread, so while I have never walked into a dining room with candles flickering and plates of gourmet goodness laid out, he wakes up every Sunday morning to get the coffee going, washes and pours up my favorite mug, and passes it to me while I’m cozied up on the living room couch.
And while he cannot put together a travel itinerary to save his soul, he has sat in a Broadway theater with me to watch a musical. He has walked through Ernest Hemingway’s home with me. He has been through more museums and libraries in a lifetime than he cares to admit. And he has never complained about any of it. Not even once.
And it’s more than that. So much more than that.
If his restaurant order is better than mine, he’ll always switch plates. He watches Sleepless In Seattle when he would rather be watching Jason Bourne. He knows my most favorite ‘lady products' and will run to the pharmacy to grab me them whenever needed.
..And, he will always, always push the grocery cart.
You know, the more I think of it, the flowers, the chocolates, the romantic meals, and the surprise getaways? That’s all just momentary anyway.
The flowers die. The chocolate and meals get devoured. And the surprise getaways happen, and then they’re over. But it’s in the moments that you can depend on (over and over and over again), well, that’s where the love is found.
Don’t search for the flowers and chocolates, ladies. Search for the one who will push your grocery cart. For that’s where the always kinda’ love is."
Heather D.
Canada
494 Words
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Thank you Love Always, Heather for sharing your beautiful story for publishing
