temporary madness

“Love is a temporary madness; it erupts like volcanoes and then subsides. And when it subsides you have to make a decision. You have to work out whether your roots have so entwined together that it is inconceivable that you should ever part. Because this is what love is. Love is not breathlessness, it is not excitement, it is not the promulgation of eternal passion. That is just being in love, which any fool can do. Love itself is what is left over when being in love has burned away, and this is both an art and a fortunate accident. Those that truly love have roots that grow towards each other underground, and when all the pretty blossoms have fallen from their branches, they find that they are one tree and not two.” ~Louis de Bernieres

This is a painting by Jean Baptiste Huet, entitled Lovers in a Landscape. I love how happy and healthy they look. Their cheeks are rosy and they seem happy in their idyllic setting. I think most of us envision ourselves like this; which is why I prefer the images in my mind and have never photographed myself in the passion of lovemaking. The image I have in my head is so much more beautiful.