Mike Little
I was NEVER going to get married. Marriage wasn’t for me. No way. If I met someone and lived with them forever, fine, but not marriage.
Our first date was almost an accident. Long story, but true. She was smart, pretty, accomplished, but not my type. But somehow a second, third, fourth, date occurred. My friends were puzzled. “She’s so quiet, so demure. Not your type.” I was still a bit puzzled myself. But intrigued. She had a solid core, was hearty, resilient, and funny. (We hiked and backpacked a lot.)
We married 8 months later, 41 years, 2 kids, and 5 grandkids ago. She’s right here beside me. She’s still lovely and, to me, very attractive. I can tell that other men in our age group see her the same way.
Finally, what’s more pathetic than an old man imagining that someone 30, 40 years younger will find him attractive?

我永远不会结婚。婚姻不适合我,不可能。如果我遇到了一个人,和她永远生活在一起,好吧,但不是结婚。
我们的第一次约会几乎是一次意外。说来话长,但这是真的。她聪明、漂亮、多才多艺,但不是我喜欢的类型。但不知何故,我们有了第二次、第三次、第四次约会。我的朋友们感到困惑。“她很安静,很端庄。却不是你喜欢的类型。”我自己还是有点困惑。但这很有趣。她内心坚定,是亲切的,适应能力强的和有趣的。(我们经常徒步旅行和背包旅行。)
8个月后我们结婚,在一起41年,有两个孩子,还有5个孙子。她就在我身边。她仍然可爱,对我来说,非常有吸引力。我可以看出,我同龄的其他男人也有同样的看法。
最后,还有什么比一个老人想象一个(看起来)比他年轻30、40岁的人觉得他有吸引力更“可悲”的呢?