You know the old adage: Plant an expectation, reap a disappointment.
Elizabeth GilbertRead
Then my mother shocked me. She said, " All those things that you want from your relationship, Liz? I have always wanted those things too." [She] showed me the handful of bullets she'd had to bite over the decades in order to stay happily married (and she was happily married...) to my father. "You have to understand how little I was raised to expect that I desired in life, honey. Remember- I come from a different time and place... and you have to understand how much I love your father.
Interpretation
What this quote means
This quote emphasizes the sacrifices made in relationships and the different expectations shaped by time and upbringing.
Elizabeth Gilbert's quote reveals a profound understanding of the complexities involved in romantic relationships, particularly from the mother's perspective. It highlights how generational differences shape people's expectations and desires, as well as the sacrifices they are willing to make for love. By sharing her own experiences and challenges, the mother advocates for understanding the depth of commitment and love that can exist within a marriage, suggesting that happiness often comes from navigating and embracing those sacrifices.
Themes
RelationshipsSacrificeLoveUnderstandingCommitment
In practice
Example use cases
This quote can be used during a wedding toast to honor the sacrifices made by couples over the years.
More from Elizabeth Gilbert
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I had always been taught that the pursuit of happiness was my natural (even national) birthright. It is the emotional trademark of my culture to seek happiness. Not just any kind of happiness, either, but profound happiness, even soaring happiness. And what could possibly bring a person more soaring happiness than romantic love.
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When I tried this morning, after an hour or so of unhappy thinking, to dip back into my meditation, I took a new idea with me: compassion. I asked my heart if it could please infuse my soul with a more generous perspective on my mind's workings. Instead of thinking that I was a failure, could I perhaps accept that I am only a human being--and a normal one, at that?
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And when you sense a faint potentiality for happiness after such dark times you must grab onto the ankles of that happiness and not let go until it drags you face-first out of the dirt - this is not selfishness, but obligation. You were given life; it is your duty to find something beautiful within life no matter how slight.
Elizabeth GilbertRead
But never again use another person's body or emotions as a scratching post for your own unfulfilling yearnings.
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