The Rom-Commers

by Katherine Center

“There it is. The whole trick to life. Be aggressively, loudly, unapologetically grateful.”

It’s all about the details you notice. And the joys you savor. And the hope you refuse to give up on. It’s all about writing the very best story of your life. Not just how you live it—but how you choose to tell it.

one inevitable truth about them is that, no matter what, the behaviors that drive the story toward its Happily Ever After are pro-social ones. Our lovers might not be good at love when they start out. But if they want that happy ending, they damn well better figure it out. And so, over the course of the story, they master the many arts of listening, and connecting, and nurturing, and caretaking, and trusting, and appreciating, and savoring, and sharing, and empathizing. They have to overcome their prejudices, learn to apologize, forgive each other, and sacrifice. When we read love stories, we get to see kindness in action. And human compassion. And connection made visible. And people choosing to be the best versions of themselves in the face of it all. Love stories show us people getting better at love—in real time. The same cannot be said of, say, serial killer stories.