I remember one day, many (many) years ago,
I was driving into The City from Greenwich.
I was listening to a talk show on the radio,
and the host asked the audience:
"Would you date yourself?"
 I turned off the radio
and thought about the question for the rest of the ride
In the end, my answer was yes

from that moment on,
I would look at myself
from that perspective
objectively,
with a willingness
to improve and become more
of who I dreamed of being

I woke up thinking about that question again today
in a slightly different way
"Would you marry yourself?"
today, my answer is still yes
 
what can I bring to a relationship
when the majority of my life I have been single
with little to no experience of being in relationship
and no experience of living with someone

I bring a type of innocence
 mixed with wisdom
from observation of other's relationships
my only experience

free of bitterness  
scarred but unmarred
with lessons learned 
from what I have seen

I bring all that I have done to heal
my pain 
the roots of which lie in the foundation
that my life was built upon

I bring my heart
and my willingness and desire to love fully
with all of my being
to give of myself unconditionally
with no demands
allowing the other to be who they are
at all times
 
I bring a willingness to receive love
and the ability to recognize
when love is being given
(most of the time, never in words)
I don't need  the spoken validation
of what I know exists
because I can feel it with all that I am


I bring my joy and happiness
the ability to be alone
without being lonely
I bring my creativity and femininity 
and the gift of vulnerability
I bring my loyalty
chastity
passion
courage


I bring my imperfect self
and the willingness to try
the acceptance that I may make mistakes
with the ability to make amends


I bring my appreciation for life
and all that it entails
I bring an understanding
that at my age
life is short
there is so much more living to do
and I am going to do it happily ever after 


Yes, I would want to be with one
such as me
to feel loved by one
who loves such as I do

It feels good to love myself
and to know my value
to understand that a loving heart
is worth more
than anything else in the world

to know
that I will be cherished
for my loving heart

Yes, if I met me,
as another,
and I wanted to marry me,
as another,
I would