The Right Person MythLove, Dates & HeartbreaksJuly 3, 2022

How do I love thee? Let me count the ways.I love thee to the depth and breadth and heightMy soul can reach... These opening lines of Sonnet 43 are often wrongly attributed to Shakespeare. But William didn’t have a monopoly on the writing of sonnets or the topic of love. Sonnet 43, more commonly known as How Do I Love Thee was written by Elizabeth Barrett Browning. She wrote the poem to the man who would become her husband, Robert. The year was 1844 and Elizabeth was one of the most well-known and best-selling writers in England. The popular, handsome and younger Robert Browning, who was also a poet, decided he wanted to meet her. She agreed and upon meeting, they talked together for hours. Their connection deepened as they began corresponding with long, passionate letters. Elizabeth and Robert were in love. This week we’re beginning a 5-part series called Love, Dates & Heartbreaks. We all know it’s complicated. Love…complicated. Dating…complicated. Heartbreaks…complicated. No matter if you’re married, single, divorced, or remarried, relationships are just complicated. This series can help you get it right. As for Elizabeth and Robert...well, they were an odd pair. Robert was six years younger, handsome, fit, healthy, and socially well connected. Elizabeth, on the other hand, was practically confined to bed with a serious respiratory condition and a spinal problem. To make things even more complicated, Elizabeth’s father refused to allow any of his 12 children to court (that’s the Victorian word for ‘date’) or to marry! And if they did, he disinherited them! But, undaunted and deeply in love, the young couple secretly courted for two years, then quietly married. Sadly, Elizabeth was disinherited by her father. She and Robert went to live in Italy, and historians tell us she never spoke to her father again. Love is complicated. Relationships are complicated. But the good news is that they don’t have to be! I invite you to join us as we take a look at the whole topic of relationships and how to make sure yours are healthy.