The Love of My Life

“The Love of My Life” by Cheryl Strayed has my favorite kind of opening to any story. The kind that within the first sentence has you immediately interested. And boy, does it stay interesting. I honestly am finding it really hard to figure out what to say about it. Basically, its about a married woman who cheats on her husband with a large amount of people to cope with the fact that her mother died, and that she “wanted” her mother. She also wishes she was dead, does heroin, gets knocked up, and has an abortion. The line “We do not help them; We tell them that they need to get help” really stuck out to me. The line is about what people tell people who want to kill themselves. It is absolutely true. I had a friend who was very depressed. I told her she should tell her parents and they should have her see a shrink. Why didn't I try to help her myself? I immediately after reading that line felt guilty for telling her to have some one else help her. I really enjoyed this story. I can not relate to a majority of it, but its an incredible story that by the end leaves the reader speechless.