The other week I curled up in bed with a new Christian romance book. Next to me was my husband, trying to get in an afternoon nap before work. As I read, I came across a line that almost made me literally laugh out loud. The author described the main hero as a "golden-haired Apollo". I turned and looked down at my own dark-haired man, who happened to be snoring by that point, and thought "that's what happens to golden-haired Apollos".
That one line made me stop and think about how I view my husband. I recently finished reading Mark Driscoll's Religion Saves: And Nine Other Misconceptions. In one chapter, while discussing sexual purity, he exhorts men and women to keep their spouse as their ideal for beauty. And the reference to a blonde Greek god made me stop and think about whether or not my husband is my standard for attractiveness. He's not some stunning, tall, dark and handsome stranger. He's not the mold of the typical Christian romance hero, but I don't think I could really fall in love with any of those guys. My husband and I have known each other for over six years. We've both changed, mentally, spiritually, and physically. But even with the added pounds and the rest of the effects that aging has taken on our bodies, I love him more. He's not some cowboy riding across the plains to rescue me, but he has a reliable Honda and I know he'll be there to pick me up after work, even if he's running a few minutes.
A few days after my little revelation, I was sitting on the couch watching my husband create a new character on the RPG video game he's been playing. I made an off-hand comment that he always makes his female characters have dark hair and why didn't he ever try to design a character with lighter hair. He looked at me, gave me his little-boy grin, and told me it was his ideal of beauty. After giving him the raised-eyebrow of "what are you talking about?" he went on to explain that it's because I have dark hair, and being his ideal, he models them after me.
It was cheesy, but it made me swoon. What can I say? We're two nerds in love.
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