Relationships
I have a confession. I’m obsessed with the Gosselins. I had never watched or cared for Jon and Kate Plus 8 until momversation discussed it. The concept of documenting the falling apart of a couple’s marriage on television was both incredibly sad and, well, exciting. And so I proceeded to spend several hours watching recent episodes, old episodes, and reading gossip news about Jon’s newest romances. Sure, the kids were cute on the show, but the most rewarding part of the episodes were moments when Kate would snap at Jon and you could just see the tension in Jon’s face. I could almost feel the dark, brooding clouds of hate towering over them. There is something so raw and private about those moments, which makes this show the most real of the reality series I have ever watched.
I know what you’re thinking. And you’re right. It is sick the way I, and the rest of America, am treating their divorce as entertainment. But it’s also human nature because we all identify ourselves in either Kate or Jon. People keep calling Kate a bitch and saying she is disrespectful of Jon’s feelings, yet I can easily see myself saying similar things. “Jon you’re breathing too loud.” So maybe he WAS breathing too loud! And that’s annoying. Even not as a mother of eight, I could snap at a husband like that.
The truth, though, is that my newest obsession isn’t so much Jon and Kate themselves, but what it is that caused their love to shatter. They represent every long-term relationship or marriage I’ve know that have fallen apart. Every couple (for the most part) starts off with strong and deeply poetic love for each other. How is it then that some romances don’t work out, even after 3, 5, 10, 20 years? It’s a terrifying thought that you can share such a strong affection for someone, knowing every mole and every scar on his or her skin, devoting years to merging together and becoming a collective force, and still end up apart, heartbroken, and alone. That thought scares me to no end and I worry constantly if in the future I could end up in Kate’s shoes. In fact, I end up wondering about what makes relationships work and fail on pretty much a daily basis.
And that is my true confession.
July 24th, 2009 at 11:32 am
thats the beauty of relationships though =) the fact that they are something that require constant effort and thought to maintain and build upon is what makes them so worthwhile. you’re always taking risks, opening yourself and learning to become one with another. and once you’ve found someone that believe you’re worth that effort for them, and likewise, you find yourself in the lucky few that have it made. =)
August 21st, 2009 at 1:03 pm
You’re always taking risks, opening yourself and learning to become one with another. And once you’ve found someone that believe you’re worth that effort for them.
I love the word “momversation” by the way