A Love Letter To Ed Goldberg

To celebrate Valentine's Day, we asked Patch readers to write a love letter to that special someone and let us deliver it. This is Linda Trytek's love letter to her husband, Ed Goldberg:

On a hot summer day when I was young, my dad would cut a huge, oblong watermelon in half. In those days, watermelons had hundreds and hundreds of black seeds that no one wanted to eat. Instead of cutting slices, my dad would scoop out the center of the watermelon (the sweetest, juiciest part) and hand it to me.

“Find someone to love who is willing to give you the heart of the watermelon,” Dad would say.

Who knew I would find the love of a million lifetimes in a psychiatric hospital? (We were employees.)

Who knew he would be my boss? (We didn’t date until I no longer worked for him.)

Who knew our first date would be a wrestling match? (His pick.)

Who knew our second date would be a concert by the Chicago Symphony? (My pick.)

When my friend, Kathy, suggested that I consider dating him, I quickly replied, “Oh, Kathy, I would never! He would drive me crazy!” Kathy told that story at our wedding in 1987.

We are complete opposites. He is extroverted, I am introverted. He is loud, I am soft-spoken. He likes movies with lots of explosions, I like to read. He likes the Grateful Dead, I like classical music. He is a man of action, I am a woman of observation and analysis before I do anything. He likes to Do, I like to Be.

And yet, for more than 30 years, his face is the first one I see in the morning, and the last one I see at night. He sees the best in me, when I can hardly recognize it in myself. He is more proud of my accomplishments than I will ever be. He always introduces me as his “beautiful wife” and whenever he says this, I stand up straighter and feel beautiful.

He has held my hand through the births of two miraculous daughters. He has held my hand when they left home and moved to other states. He has held me when I cried during my parents’ deaths. He has held my hand at the movies, and when we just walk around the block. He has held my hand when I was close to death in an emergency room. He has been there when I have learned to walk again, more than once. He has washed and folded mountains of laundry. He has washed piles of dishes. He has supported and helped me in so many ways. He has watched over me with more love than I could ever imagine.

He is my wonderful husband, Ed Goldberg, the love of a million lifetimes.

He has given me the heart of the watermelon more times than I will ever be able to count.

Love,
Linda

—Linda Trytek

See all Patch love letters here.