A Story About Two People

I want to tell you a story about two people.

Two people who fit together, as he says, like a jigsaw puzzle.

I tell him I like him more and more everyday.

There are moments we cling to each other, moments we push away, moments we fall back and moments we fall forward - both alone and together.

We are a complicated pair. In our own heads often. Intense. Independent. Damaged (and I mean that in the best possible way). Passionate. We are so very different and so very much the same.

We have tangled schedules. We tip toe. We ask forgiveness. I soften as I remember these are new pathways and I can choose something different this time.

We inhabit a new territory. Our families broke open. We know that sadness. We know the questions and the fear and the desire to create and build and protect. We know what it's like to know someone forever and ever and then have that person disappear (even though both are still integral pieces of our lives). We know the reality of stories that have an ending.

We also know new joy and we've felt that rush of a beginning.

We are learning as we grow. Alone and together about who we are as individuals and who we are together and what it means to have our families expand.

I don't know how this story will end. It's happening right now and we're living it. Sometimes these sorts of stories are really hard to tell because you're living in the middle of it.

If we always waited for the end to tell a story we'd miss so much.

When I feel most afraid I remind myself that there are things to say, and things to celebrate, and pieces to document without fear of how the story will end. Do stories ever really end? Or do they just change and curve and zig zag and evolve into the next one?

Our family stories are different now, but they are still our families.

What I know is this, he has a huge giant heart of gold even when he tries to hide it with jokes and sarcasm. And the cure for everything just might be pie. Pumpkin for him, fruit for me.

We are in it people. One day at a time.

To be continued.

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186 thoughts

  1. annie samuels says…
    07/10/2014

    so happy for you both.

    Reply 0 Replies
  2. Mandy says…
    07/10/2014

    Ali you are truely an exquisite writer!! Just love.

    Reply 0 Replies
  3. leisa says…
    07/10/2014

    maybe you are thinking too much? wing it more!

    Reply 0 Replies
  4. Myra says…
    07/10/2014

    Like.

    Reply 0 Replies
  5. Lisa W. says…
    07/10/2014

    I am going to take this as a GOOD omen...as I just got home from a court hearing today for my divorce. WOW it is deep, dark and dirty place. I can FEEL your brokeness so well, I'm living this, I'm breathing this, right now EVERYDAY! I hope I have a story tell, that keeps going someday!!!! I LOVE your blog and THIS right here right now is why. I know I am not alone in this, not just me that is going through this OR has gone through this. I will USE this as a tool to help me survive this and "BE STRONG" and have "COURAGE" to get through this messy MESSY thing. Thank you Ali for your REAL true story!

    Reply 0 Replies
  6. Ann English says…
    07/10/2014

    So happy for you in this moment. You deserve "happy"!

    Reply 0 Replies
  7. Cindy says…
    07/10/2014

    I absolutely love this post. It's extremely honest and thought provoking! Best of all it's VERY inspiring!!

    Reply 0 Replies
  8. Anne says…
    07/10/2014

    You have such a beautiful way with words, Ali, and you're not afraid to show the world what's in your heart. Thank you for the inspiration!

    Reply 0 Replies
  9. Jocelyn Thompson says…
    07/10/2014

    ahhhh!! that just soothes my soul!

    Reply 0 Replies
  10. Shannon Frischknecht says…
    07/10/2014

    Ali, this is beautifully written. I have always loved how "real" you are. I hope to run into you one of these days- maybe at a Beaver game :) Shannon Frischknecht (Canterbury)

    Reply 0 Replies
  11. Jen says…
    07/10/2014

    Beautifully said. I can so relate and appreciate the reminder that the focus doesn't always have to be on the end. Thanks for sharing :)

    Reply 0 Replies
  12. Teresa says…
    07/10/2014

    Beautiful story Ali! And you give me hope, thank you!

    Reply 0 Replies
  13. Isabell Inman says…
    07/10/2014

    Love this post and you

    Reply 0 Replies
  14. Elizabeth says…
    07/10/2014

    Broke open…to let your light shine out.

    Reply 0 Replies
  15. Wendy Smedley says…
    07/10/2014

    All I can say is go girl!

    Reply 0 Replies
  16. Paula says…
    07/10/2014

    May the two of you THRIVE along with the kids. May God bless each of you.

    Reply 0 Replies
  17. Michelle says…
    07/10/2014

    Love that you shared this, REAL LIFE and you are living it. beautiful.

    Reply 0 Replies
  18. Cecilia Reyes says…
    07/11/2014

    As always, you have shared your heart so beautifully. Thank you for being so open. I am glad to see you so happy and hopeful!

    Reply 0 Replies
  19. ana frazee says…
    07/11/2014

    excellent! And yes, we scrapbook to tell the story as we live in the story.

    Reply 0 Replies
  20. Debbie says…
    07/11/2014

    Beautiful! You do have a gift of expression, and his touched me. I can relate as I'm also a single mom and have been through similar. Thank you for the reminder to always live in the present. We don't know where the next bend will take us.... But it's a life worth living and documenting. Thanks for sharing.

    Reply 0 Replies
  21. Shelleymay says…
    07/11/2014

    Cannot wait for you to write a book. Love this, girl. Thank you for sharing so deeply.

    Reply 0 Replies
  22. Solange-Isbaha says…
    07/11/2014

    Wish you the best. :)

    Reply 0 Replies
  23. Deborah P says…
    07/11/2014

    I have to admit that I was hoping for an engagement announcement at the end of this post. I'm pulling for you both as you live out your individual stories and your combined one.

    Thank you, as always, for being so open to express what's going on in your life. That's what makes me feel I know you even though we've never met. And, it always makes me think about what's happening in my life. Not the same things at all - I'm not married and don't have children, but we all face emotional situations, we all have to make a decision to choose happiness and joy and we all have to open ourselves up to risk if we are to truly live. Your openness in your situation helps encourage me to be open in mine. Thank you.

    Reply 0 Replies
  24. Gayle says…
    07/11/2014

    I was looking at one of your PL posts the other day and thinking to say how much of a challenge documenting life can be when your partner is not your spouse. I wonder if I will look back at photos of our current "family", me, my daughter, and live-in husband-like person, and regret the decision to include or not to include him. If things don't work out, will it be sad? Am I screwing up her memories even though all three of us are in integral part of each other's lives? It's been weighing on my heart a lot lately but I hate to not take the photo or write the memory. My daughter is old enough now that she'll have all these same memories on her own, framed through her own lens. I can't wipe her slate clean expunging photos the way I have in the past. And I don't mean at all for this to sound negative. You're the only other single mom doing the same things I am doing and it begs some unique questions.

    Reply 0 Replies
  25. Cathy Zielske says…
    07/11/2014

    Love this, Ali.

    Reply 0 Replies

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