henry

Highly ambitious men often make extraordinary partners, but very few people speak honestly about how difficult it can be to be with them. The degree of loneliness that accompanies loving such a man is immense. You are perpetually sharing him with the future he is trying to build. His mind is occupied by the empire, vision, responsibility of constructing something larger than himself. And because of that, there are long stretches where you feel alone, even while deeply loved. Men like this need women who possess an interior life of their own, women capable of building alongside them rather than merely waiting for attention. A woman who can contribute meaningfully to the empire itself understands the architecture of his absence better than most. There is something deeply saddening about this dynamic, yet strangely beautiful too. And truthfully, if it were otherwise, I do not think I would want it. Some forms of love are inseparable from sacrifice. You endure it for your future generations, for yourselves and the possibility of creating something that exceeds both of you.