Dear reader,

Every year for some time now a small group gathers on an evening around the holidays for a deep dive discussion regarding the mysteries of life while enjoying a few libations and tasty treats. The group is diverse; male, female, young and old, and rarely exceeds six in number.

On this occasion we took on the meaning of true love which seemed like an odyssey through an endless prism of colorful lights, gossamer veils and opaque cloaks shining from many angles. Meaning, the more we probed and bantered, the harder it was to captivate.

Each person contributed to the emerging conflict and consensus from various perspectives, all being valid. In a way, everyone’s experience with love is a spotted sense of perfection, and virtuous, assuming it is a genuine communion with another held dear – and holds steadfast through minor discontent or even advancing waves of fire. One description might be…an infinite oneness between two beings, each comprised of distinct parts yet bonded by a common nucleus.

In defining true love, it seems beauty needs to be included as a sister or even a distant cousin. In 1878 the authoress Margaret Wolfe Hungerford wrote “beauty is in the eye of the beholder”. Perhaps we could substitute love for the word beauty in this phrase as equally legitimate.

No conclusion ever comes from these make-shift symposiums. However, upon dispersing in the wee hours we carried with us some additional brain food to digest in the days to come.

Patrick Wood

Publisher