I love going to Meredith's house because it's like visiting a special library with all of my personally honed literary tastes.  In other words, Mere and I often prefer the same authors and for all the same reasons (and the book collector in her does all the leg-work for me).  All this to say: I started reading a new book last week, one recommended and loaned to me by Meredith who said I'd love her writing style. My conclusion? The writer is truly delectable! And yes, good authors should be described in the same fashion as pastries. I prefer the following adjectives: scrumptious, delicious, enticing, charming, and savory.

My favorite quote, so far, from Love Walked In by Marisa De Los Santos is a description of the main character's first date. She writes,

We talked and talked and talked. Maybe love comes in at the eyes, but not nearly as much as it comes in at the ears, at least in my experience. As we talked, lights flicked on inside my head; by the end of the night, I was a planetarium.

I love this quote because it perfectly embodies my first date with Adam. For the first time ever, dating was simple. Pure. We just talked and talked and talked... and talked. It being a blind date, we should've been nervous or guarded. But those emotions were off-limits to us somehow; we just connected and we knew it.

I've been thinking a lot about this Love Walked In quote, about how society paints it so that love is merely lust. Society tells us love is about choosing the right looking person. Someone attractive enough, ambitious enough, athletic enough...
All of those attributes are perceived with the naked eye.

But for love to come in at the ears-- for love to unfold with every story, embarrassing tale exposed, and shared laughter-- that is beautiful. So beautiful, in fact, that I was satisfied by De Los Santos' quote all week long.  Until I realized: my love for Adam didn't really come in at the eyes or the ears. (Okay, maybe a little seeped in due to his freckles and storytelling!)  But I think my love for him is born out of his kindness and servant-heartedness towards me.

I wish I could count the times he's gone out of his way to do something considerate for me, but such record-keeping is already impossible.  He's a servant down to his core, always looking for ways to honor and care for me.  Some acts are practical, like fixing a light or a faucet.  Some acts are symbolic, like opening a car door or carrying my bags.  Some acts are emotional, such as flowers and singing "our" song. Some acts are mental, like inquiries about my research. And some acts are spiritual, like prayers for our relationship or for loved ones in our lives.  This man loves me with his actions every single day. And that is where love comes in because love is a verb.

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Even Johnny boy gets that.