The Love Lock Series: The Piquant Taste Chapter

Love is a blend of flavors complementing each other. Sweet and savory. Spicy and refreshing. One of my friends, who will be anonymous in this post, shared an incredibly poetic response:

I tend to focus on the dynamic I have with another person more than specific characteristics about them. For example, I could have all the same interests as someone but if our dynamic together naturally veers frantic and isn’t life-giving, it might be difficult to grow long-term love. I don’t want to treat people like a product checklist which lives in our heads, rather I want to experience the reality of our dynamic in the touchable, sensory world.

I open myself to long-term love when there’s a dynamic between me and another person that’s playful when it’s called for, spontaneous when it’s called for, and grounded when it’s called for; a dynamic of mutual empathy, creative participation, and desire; a dynamic that’s not frantic or achievement-obsessed, but sustainable,  soft and contributive to each other’s larger and personal worlds; a dynamic that’s open and flexible, while also being dependable, intentional, and appropriately principled. A dynamic that can move between the spiritual and the sensual, between poetry and practicality; between savoring the wine at communion, to savoring the whiskey at a friend’s birthday, to savoring the taste of each other on a Tuesday evening.

Simply beautiful. His answer has me thinking of the nuance and balance that goes into falling in love. The piquant taste of chili atop cornbread. The sea salt sprinkled on a chocolate chip cookie. The pairing of wine and cheese. Love is a flavor profile that effortlessly collides.