A short story: He saw her before she ever knew he even existed. She carried herself with both a joy and a sadness, and he loved her. Not for any human reason did this love exist, but because he saw her, fully and completely, saw the softness that lie beneath the plastic-cast and hard words of this world. He longed to take care of her and provide for her, but he must bide his time; it was a wise love and a self-less love, patient.

Darkness. And so it happened, the plastic shroud of the world that she adorned herself with was perfectly opaque, and her life began to grow dark. Deep within, she longed to be seen, so she made herself seemingly seen by making herself look like everyone else, and she sacrificed joy for happy then happy for okay, but at least she looked like everyone else; at least, that is what she told herself. 

He saw her though. He watched as she poured herself out to the world. He wept when her shroud became so thick that the slightest attention caused her to forsake the last shred of her self-protection, that is, doing the right thing, to acquire a mask of love. He saw it all, but he never stopped loving her, on the contrary, he protected her in ways she would never know. And when it seemed all was lost, and she lie on the street shivering in rags and the world had discarded her,… he still loved her. He brought her something small to eat, but only a small amount to begin; he didn’t want her falling back into her masked thinking that she needed to earn this love – and throw herself at him for all the wrong reasons. He loved and would settle for nothing less than love in return.

He came to her everyday on the street, for years, talking with her, but mostly just walking with her and sitting with her and showing her little pieces of beauty that had been hidden from her for so long. He found her one morning very early. She was still on the street, warm in a blanket he had given her; he awoke her, calling her name gently. She opened her eyes to his face and he eased her up to sitting. And there they sat, simply listening and watching together as the first birds chirruped awake and the sun began to rise. He placed his arm around her as they sat quietly and she loved him. He asked for nothing and demanded nothing from her, but in that moment, he gave her the one thing that he too yearned for, Love, real and true. She leaned into him and softly sang, “Everyone wants to be loved,” and he finished, “and your longing for love gets twisted and dark. You get lost, you get lost in the maze that leads to your heart.” *

And they loved, but she loved because He loved her first. 

*Sung by Suzy and Lucy Roche.