Trust

She told me about her last breakup, a tale of high drama and breathless, reckless acts of betrayal.

We were eating pizza, the always-dependable Li Pecuri (arugula, goat cheese, sundried tomatoes) at Terroni.

I took a hearty sip of red wine. How. Can. Anyone. Be. Trusted. I mused, with not a little dramatic flourish of my own.

I. Have. To. Trust. she said. If I don’t trust I’m not alive.

Alphonso Lingis writes, “trust requires courage.” And, “trust is…giddy and lustful.”

Getting to know someone takes courage, and it takes time.

We finish our pizza, linger over wine and whiskey. The waitress gives up on us and goes to have a smoke in the back.

Sometimes you get a sudden glimpse of someone, like having a flashbulb go off in a darkened room. For a second, you see the future, and all the mistakes and great decisions you’ll make. All the ways you could be hurt, and all the pleasures you could have.

Trust is moving forward.

How do you trust yourself?