The trouble in paradise comes in chapter three but in the beginning
everything was perfect. The “one flesh” couple lived without fear or guilt or
shame or any of the ways of being and doing and thinking that rip one flesh
apart and cause untold heartache. But once the two lusted after the forbidden fruit
and crossed the line between creature and creator they no longer felt
comfortable in their own skin. Relationships between helpmate partners have
never been the same despite the fairy-tale optimism of happily ever after. Not that
helpmate partners cannot be “one flesh” in a way that benefits both. It just
takes more clinging to each other than we may care to or are able to do. So going
back to the beginning is helpful. Not the first blush of love, although that is
very nice, but the beginning of this story. It was not good for the first human
to be alone and so God gave us the gift of the other who can be “one flesh” with
us. If we think of ourselves as taken out of and given to each other we might
cling to one another in ways that make the best parts of the fairy-tale come
true.
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