Which relationship has taught you the most about yourself?

View all responses

My current wife has probably taught me more about myself than anyone else ever has. Mostly because she somehow convinced me that trusting another person doesn’t automatically end with everything catching fire. That was not exactly an easy lesson. I spent enough time dealing with my ex-wife to develop the completely reasonable conclusion that people are assholes and trust is just a fancy word for getting screwed over later.

Then I met my current wife and, slowly, that bullshit started falling apart. She showed me that not every person is waiting for the opportunity to screw you over, manipulate you, or turn your life into a three-ring circus. Some people actually mean what they say. Some people show up. Some people have your back without keeping score. Apparently this was information I needed beaten into my thick Gen X skull.

So the biggest thing she taught me is that I can trust people. Not everybody, because I’m not suddenly an idiot. But the right people? Yeah. I can let somebody in without immediately expecting the worst. That probably says more about how much I had to unlearn than anything else. Turns out not every woman is an asshole. Who knew.