It's difficult, but it's real

That's a paraphrase from a line in from Taylor Swift's song "Love Story." (Yes! Taylor Swift. True fact: first time I heard the song, I listened with bated breath because I didn't know how it was going to end. I cheered when it ended up with a happy ending. The actual line is, "This love is difficult, but it's real.")

Difficult, but real. I like real, and it makes me even like difficulty. Real is so present, so tangible, so experiential. I'm not talking about gritty-grotty depressing "realist...