The New York Times piece Loving Dolly Was Easy. Understanding Her Was Hard illustrates that love is an instinctive emotion but understanding needs effort and sympathy. We usually choose to learn about what can see directly. For this reason, we ignore what is behind them and don’t understand why it is. Few of us take the initiative to explore others’ hidden struggles and inner worlds. This article reminds me of my story about my father.

Loving my father is very easy in my life because I love my family. My father is a quiet man. I talk to him much less than my mother does. However, he speaks little but does a lot. For example, when he saw my shampoo is not enough, he asked me whether I needed to buy new one. Within three days, I saw a new shampoo in the bathroom. He consistently fulfilled every need of mine. To me, he is a reliable shelter. So my love for him grew naturally and it required no effort.

However, I seem to take all of this for granted. One day I asked my dad to remind me of homework. Then he forgot to do this. I was a little angry and I had a quarrel with him. After that, my mom told me that my dad had a lot of works to complete so he maybe forgot about my task. Therefore, I know he also had his difficulties that I didn’t understand before. He had to do so many tasks, not only my task. Finally I realize that he is a dad, husband and hard-working employee. I started to do some housework because I want to reduce his stress. 

This article taught me that just as the public easily loved Dolly for her gentle appearance and symbolic meaning but failed to see her hidden hardships and complex struggles, I once loved my father only for the warmth he provided me. Sometimes we need a chance to understand our family members’ hardships. Growth can mean I no longer love others by their surface and choose to walk into their inner world. Only understanding makes our love become sincere and meaningful.