We ARE all ugly.

If you stare at someone for long enough, you start to see all of the imperfections in their faces. Small wrinkles, asymmetry. Everything that makes us imperfect can be seen, if only we stare long enough.

It is the same on the inside too, I believe. You spend enough time around someone and you begin to see the side of people they try to cover up, the things that make them imperfect. And as a race, we tend to strive for perfection, so anything less is a disappointment.

This is a solid case for divorce, of course. You marry someone, you spend years by their side. You know their secrets and their tells. They say when a man has an affair, the wife always knows. Because she spends her time with him, when they are not at work, they are together. We get used to routine and any break in that routine does not go unnoticed. We see, a new twinkle in their eye, or a smile that didn't used to be their, we have to question why. What changed?

We can never hide our imperfections from those close to us, but it's the fact that we try that makes the biggest difference. It's the passwords we use to protect our porn collection, or the encrypted messages we send our mistresses. It's in the forced laughter and the suppressed tears. We try to make the people around us happy, while making ourselves happy as well. And who can ask for more than that, really?

Marriage is a sham, but it is not the biggest problem facing couples. It's when we stop trying to hide our indiscretions that the problems really begin.

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