Lovely lines

I know this life cannot be lived without dependencies, micro-webs of ritual and ardor and economies of need that bind us all together. But how do we stand up to loss? And love again without holding something back?

Stirring lines from this week's ode to Modern Love, entitled "The Fear of Surrendering", by Julia Anne Miller. 

Miller tells the story of her life being in a loving relationship and at the same time keeping her "Single Girl's Starter Kit," a storage facility that can accommodate "one single girl’s bed, one set of flannel sheets, one pillow, my grandmother’s afghan, one each of various kitchen utensils, one tool kit, one ladder and one box of love letters from past admirers."

Miller pays $189 a month to maintain the Kit in Brooklyn.

Akin somewhat to a bomb shelter, The Singer Girl's Starter Kit has everything a single girl needs in case she breaks up with her boyfriend. 

With sagacity, Miller describes the Single Girl’s Starter Kit as "the opposite of a hope chest."