| >You guys really don't like us do you? I won't speak for other men, only for myself. Growing up my idea of what a normal relationship look like was 60% not telling the truth, and 40% of bracing yourself for a fight of some kind if you did tell the truth. Sometimes it ended with just angry words but sometimes it escalated. Thing was, if that was what having a partner looks like, to be more terrified about coming home then hiding at school or work where you were treated with far more respect, then what was the point? So it's not about disliking women or expecting sex. It's the idea of intimacy with anyone that's horrific to me. Being older now I realize that perhaps what I saw growing up probably isn't what it's supposed to be. But what is it supposed to look like if not that? How am I supposed to act as a partner? What should I be expecting? And neither answers the question of what the point is. Or whether it is worth the risk of dropping your guard. At this point in my life I don't think I'll ever find the answer, I'm far too old now. And with today's availability of baubles wanting attention, even if it's an unfulfilling or unhappy life, there's enough distraction to keep one's mind off of any of that. I don't know if there's anyone else out there that's like this, but I'd be very surprised if my life's story was the only one like this in the world. Hope this helps gives a little perspective for you. |
I appreciate your perspective, and I'm going to ask you to take another look at it. How much of what you've written is gender-specific? Only the first sentence identifies your gender.
A lot of women could have written something almost identical. This is not about one gender vs. another. This is a human condition of trying and failing to find close relationships.