"Love Story"

Despite believing whole-heartely that polyamory is in fact the ideal relationship model for myself and for most people I know, I still can't believe how much I get sucked into loving cheesy "happily-ever-after" books and movies and, more embarrassingly, even finding myself having visceral reactions to the lyrics, sobbing while listening to The Cure's "Love Song," Taylor Swift's "Love Story," or Kate Nash's "The Nicest Thing." Though I swear the opportunity for the latter only occurs once a month.

I can appreciate and relate to love themes in mainstream media, the existence of deep emotional all-encompassing bonds with other human beings, the intoxication of pursuit and being pursued, reeling over first kisses and first "I love you's," and the desire to intimately share my life over space and time, but not so much the repeated "first comes love, then comes marriage, then comes a baby in baby carriage" stereotype that's crammed down my throat. I believe love can happen more than once, at different times with different people in any range of intensity or intention. Marriage and children are options, not mandatory cultural ritual. I wish, almost more than anything, that these ideas were co-opted more in our Western society, but alas, they are not.

My inclination to listen to Rihanna's "Only Girl in the World" on repeat goes against practically everything I stand for in relationships, but I eat it up. I can relate to the lyrics of wanting to be the most important person in the world for someone else, yearning to be recognized as inspiring the discovery of untapped pools of  feelings and characteristic's that my partner hasn't yet reached, but her lyrics aren't followed with "And its ok if she is the only girl in the world tomorrow."