I love two men. Thank goodness that on the earthly plane, these loves were sequential. On the spiritual side they are simultaneous.
My first love, tall dark and handsome, swept me off my feet when I was 24. He scooped me onto the back of a motorcycle and showed me through sensual, passionate presence how to fall in love with life. He was gentle soul with a merciful heart. We crisscrossed the North American continent 200,000 miles on two wheels, our faces turned to the sun and wind. We created a daughter and loved her strong and beautiful with the steady mystery of old mountains.
On a sudden exhale, life snuffed his candle 22 years ago on Christmas Eve. I folded into a keen of grief that endured as life pulled me forward. I still wrap the tenderness of his love, soft like his leather jacket, around my shoulders. I rejoice to see his fragments, his eyes, his kindness, in my daughter and her sons. Every Christmas Eve, I give myself over to our love story and savor our blessings.
A second love swept me into his arms on Valentine’s Day when I was 50. Eros revealed itself in his physicality and caressed awake our deeper feminine nature. He is compassionate soul with largesse of heart. Our work as healer-helpers has taken us to other continents. We connect a family of unique, beautiful children and grandchildren.
We grow grey together, slower, more fragile. Love’s ageless arms hold us tight through the unpredictable and unknown. His easy laughter lifts us up. Our 22-year love story is an academy of unfolding.
My friend, loss does not end love. That is not possible. If we let it, loss opens the portal to an understanding of timeless, enduring oneness. New love polishes the luster of old love. In the end, it’s all one love unfolding into infinite light, a brilliant array of miracles unimaginable. To warm the day and night. To warm life for others. To warm the heart of the world.
I am deeply grateful to love and be loved by two men.
Copyright 2022: Linda Sandel Pettit, Ed.D.
Photo courtesy of istockphoto.com
Dr. Linda Pettit is an internationally known mentor to intuitive creative women in the helping professions. She assists her clients to thrive in their work and to share their wisdom through speaking, writing, and content creation.
Linda offers sanctuaries, intimate small group programs, for women healers who want to become more visible and effective, and for women book writers ready for an intensive
developmental editing laboratory. For a peek at Linda’s poetry, see: https://drlindapettit.com/yearning-a-poem/
Linda holds a doctorate in counseling psychology, a master’s degree in counselor education and a bachelor’s degree in journalism.
Visit www.lindasandelpettit.com to learn more about her programs, individual mentoring, and array of masterclasses.
A Free Mini Master Class
The 3 Principles: Simple Truth
Sign up for my free master class on the 3 Principles. Hear about a simple understanding that can change lives.
You may also enjoy these...
Friendship is a Grace
“Grammy, we’re friends, right?” he said. We sat at the kitchen island side-by-side eating lunch, my 3-year-old grandson and I.
Look for the Helpers
Some words of wisdom from the gentle Mr. Fred Rogers of the beloved Mr. Roger’s Neighborhood television show, however, often lift my awareness away from gloom and doom.
My Vocation
“Ma, I want to be a nun,” I said. “I’m going to enter a convent.” I sat across from my mom in the restaurant of the J.L Hudson department store in Ann Arbor, Michigan.
