One True Loves

by Taylor Jenkins Reid

“But I’m starting to think you don’t always know what your dreams are. Some of us have to run smack into one before we see it.”

I decided to no longer wonder what would have happened if things had worked out differently. And instead, I would focus on what was in front of me. I would focus on reality instead of asking myself questions about fictions.

I am stronger than when I knew them. I stand straighter. I am more patient. I hold fewer grudges. I am more thankful for what I have, less resentful for what I don’t. I am less restless. I read a lot more books. I play the piano. I’m engaged.

We are two people who are madly in love with our old selves. And that is not the same as being in love.

Maybe, if you’re the kind of person who’s willing to give all of yourself, the kind of person who is willing to love with all of your heart even though you’ve experienced just how much it can hurt . . . maybe you get lots of true loves, then. Maybe that’s the gift you get for being brave. I am a woman who dares to love again.

Just because something isn’t meant to last a lifetime doesn’t mean it wasn’t meant to be. We were meant to have been.”