The Emblematic Woman

The Emblematic Woman. We’ve all been there. 

Maybe it took years for us to realize the loop was recursive. That even though the highs and lows feel different every time, they’re actually a place we’ve visited before. 

Here are the plain facts about that Emblematic Woman:

• She is almost totally unreliable.

• She doesn't actually care about you.

• She will disappoint you more often than she will satisfy you.

• You will always feel like you were so close, so tantalizingly close, to making things work.

• You will feel that maybe it’s your fault, that maybe something about you was responsible for things not working out.

Which is why your friends and loved ones look at you like an idiot every time you try again. They’re able to see the ungarnished narrative, the never-ending pattern, the tale of hurt and impossible hope that has marked your entire history. 

What they can’t see, and what kept you coming back, were those ephemeral moments of transcendent feeling that seemed to come from nowhere and represent the light side of the pain. 

It takes time to understand that this momentary transportation isn't worth the wind it’s carried off on, and that pain isn't a prerequisite to the intense highs of love. But even stupid young people can be cured by time, and if we’re lucky we teach ourselves to stop chasing a future that plainly does not exist. 

Soccer, though…well, let’s return to the facts, and replace ‘she’ with ‘soccer’...

-Run Of Play

Sadly, I personally think this is both true for soccer/football and emblematic woman... 

T/t: I loved the way you call me your superhero... Am I still your hero??