Our own relationship story (part six)

Back to our own story...

----(Julia's story)

When last we left off, I had recognized that continuing the rapidly developing, not-just-platonic relationship with Rick was wrong, wrong, wrong in light of the fact that he was already very involved with a woman, and I had committed to myself not to be involved (again) with an unavailable man. Overcoming—at least temporarily—the powerful narcotic of love and desire, I had finally snapped out of it to the point that I realized I needed to stop what seemed to be a runaway train of deep emotion and powerful romantic feelings, and somehow either transform our relationship into a purely platonic friendship, or break off all contact. I also, lovingly but firmly, laid down the law about not being fully honest with his girlfriend. We could not continue to disregard the potential for hurt to her. Like a splash of icy water in the face, taking a stand had broken the spell for me.

Wow! I felt so much better! Though I did not know how this was going to work, standing firm for integrity felt powerfully right, and I had faith that I would somehow find a way to break free. The persistent mild nausea I had been experiencing for weeks cleared up instantly as I stopped trying to con myself! That sickly feeling I had been tolerating and pushing down in my consciousness—the all-too-familiar, bad feeling from being in love with someone that was not available, just evaporated. You know, selling out yourself is never, ever going to set right. You may get used to the way it feels, and you may be able to convince yourself at some level that it’s okay, but truly, you can never really feel but so good when you are lying to yourself. And the truth is, if you don’t have complete integrity with YOU, there’s not a chance of having a healthy relationship with someone else. Rick and I had talked a lot about integrity, and while it seemed that it was vitally important to both of us, what it came down to for me was that if you don’t have integrity in one area, you just don’t have integrity overall. Part of what I had said to him in the "cold splash of water" was that he'd need to tell the girlfriend about our relationship, or we could not even be friends. So I went to bed that night feeling better than I had in weeks, knowing I’d done the right thing, and that I would be rewarded by God for the sacrifice (see the last installment for that reference). And, sure enough, first thing the next morning I got my gift! Here (slightly edited to leave out parts that won’t make sense to you) is the first email exchange of that day:

(Julia) I think we shifted something. I feel different! I feel better in a strange way--even if it is nothing but the honesty of coming to terms with what was really happening, it freed something up. I hope you feel better, too.

(Rick) I don't feel better, but I do feel more focused on who I am and where I'm headed... What is hardest for me (here I go again, into the "NO!! DON'T SAY THAT!" place) is the clear realization that I would rather be with you...You are doing your best to help us get to a more stable, more buddy-based place to be, and I'm swallowing my tongue because I don't want to spoil the plan. Don't worry, I will do everything I can to be your buddy. I needed, this morning as I read your note, to say this, though. You are everything I never knew I always wanted.
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From here, things snowballed, and as Rick and I got more and more honest with ourselves and each other, taking a stand for openness and integrity on all levels, it became clear that we were willing to do whatever it took to be with each other. I will share some of what that entailed in the next installment.


----(Rick's story)

The time in our relationship that Julia writes about was one of the most roller-coaster-like times I can recall over the entirety of my life. In fact, one very long email thread was even called that: “On the roller coaster with you” was a message that went back and forth, each of us adding to it, for days.

Just as she says, we discussed the fact that our relationship had reached a tipping point. I had discussed Julia with my friend (the person I was involved with at the time), but I had not been completely forthcoming. Truth be told, it was hard to know what to say, since I had no idea where Julia and I were heading. I knew my head was spinning, and my feet weren’t touching the ground all that often. Still, I managed to remain blind for a surprisingly long time.

Once Julia wrote the email message that she quotes, I knew I had to say what was in my heart, and that was that she was (is…will be!!) the person I wanted to share my life with. In the paragraph she quoted from my answering email, I borrowed a line from a Matthew Perry/Salma Hayek movie called “Fools Rush In” (no, I didn’t think about any possible parallels between the movie title and what real life was busily working through us at the time!) which seemed so appropriate at that moment: Julia is, truly, everything I never knew I always wanted.

We spent several days going back and forth, both via email and on the phone. Within a couple of days of the exchange Julia quoted, as we were trying to figure out if this was a buddy deal, a blooming love deal, a soul mate deal, or exactly what we were up to, we had made progress. I wrote this November 9th, 1997:

----

I ask nothing of you, knowing you give me all of you

I do not seek you out, knowing you within me

I believe you to be exactly who you are

I know, more than anything, your love

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Two days later, Julia wrote this:

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There are no words for what I am feeling now.

Just resting in the warm glow, accepting the terror,

welcoming all into the Love we are. Everything is

in divine order. Everything is unfolding exactly as

it should. I am ready for each moment, in each

moment, with you.
----

When I look back at the sheer volume of beautiful, and beautifully written, heartfelt heart-full-of-love messages we exchanged, I am still overwhelmed to the point that my eyes tear up. No inspiration matches that of Love, when that glorious energy is flowing at full speed through a human being! We were in the midst of establishing a bond that we saw pretty quickly was a precious and fragile entity unto itself, one we would protect with every ounce of our beings.

Still, back in the life of the earth-bound person I was when not emailing or talking to Julia, there was much to be done, both emotionally and as physical action. How do I work out the fact that I was falling for Julia in a huge way—and was finally able to admit to myself that this was the case—while at the same time having feelings for the woman I had been seeing for some time?

The answers were on the way, and we soon had them.