I have always defined myself as a hopeless romantic, a true sucker for a good story where true love triumphs and happily ever after wins out in the end. The simplest reason for this is because I have always had a desire to get married, to find that one guy I’m meant to be with for the rest of my life. It wasn’t until I allowed God to enter the equation that I discovered the truth of the deep longing inside my heart.
People often think of the most classic love stories when they approach the definition of true love—Romeo and Juliet, Anthony and Cleopatra, maybe even Jack and Rose from the movie “Titanic”. However, I have my own list and it may be surprising. Katniss and Peeta from “The Hunger Games” trilogy take second place, followed closely by Diana and Steve from the Wonder Woman comic in third, but my first choice for an example of true love has always been the story of Pacey Witter and Joey Potter from the teenage melodrama “Dawson’s Creek.”
I never actually enjoyed the TV series. The premise of the plot line seemed rather annoying but right before I started college, reruns of the show were featured on cable and I began watching it at the point where the relationship between Pacey and Joey was introduced. The relationship was destined for problems from the very beginning since Joey’s character had already been designated as Dawson’s (the leading man) soulmate. The whole series was created to build up their innocent and emotional relationship. Suddenly the plot twisted and Dawson’s best friend finds himself falling in love with Dawson’s girl.
Pacey was the quintessential underdog. He believed that he was a reject and a failure. When his relationship with Joey was discovered by Dawson, Pacey was forsaken by Dawson and the rest of the cast. My heart went out to him, it is rare to see a man willing to give himself entirely to another when he knows the girl will never be able to give herself entirely to him. Regardless of this, he never stopped loving her because he couldn’t.
Watching Pacey and Joey made me think about the other stories of true love I mentioned earlier. The stories all had central commonalities, the main one that all the men involved were underdogs. They found themselves in love with someone unattainable but against all odds, they end up with the girl. This is the miracle of true love; the Holy Spirit intervenes and creates the unimaginable out of hopeless situations.
After I prayed about these stories for quite awhile, the Holy Spirit graciously started to connect the dots for me. I have recently gone through a consecration to St. Joseph. During the consecration I recognized the hidden love story of Joseph and Mary. All that Joseph took on to protect Mary and keep her safe was immense. I realized that in the love stories I appreciate, the man falls in love with a woman who belongs to someone else, someone more defined in the leading role. St. Joseph experienced this—he fell in love with a woman who is the immaculate spouse of the Holy Spirit. Who can compete with the Holy Spirit?!!! Yet God intervened and while Joseph was willing to take a back seat, God said no. God saw the inner desires of Joseph’s heart and fulfilled them in miraculous and unimaginable ways.
The love story of St. Joseph and Mary is the love we are all meant to share with our soulmates. God is love, and when I watch these love stories, I am allowed to glimpse the love He intended for all the families He created. Pacey was never a religious character, but the way he loved Joey could only have come from the Holy Spirit because it was unconditional. I am still searching for my love story, but I know it will happen because God continues to remind me of the deepest desires of my heart. In addition, the Holy Spirit is already the leading man in my life, but I will keep asking for the “underdog” too. That way I can live the life predestined by the example of the Holy Family—Jesus, Mary and Joseph.
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Originally published at Kitty in the City
Photo: Pexels / PD-US
