Response to T.C. Boyle's "Love of My Life"

       Maybe it's because I'm a cliched hopeless romantic, not one of my most admirable qualities, or maybe it's because of the disturbingly distraught storyline that draws me into Boyle's story; nonetheless, I surprisingly enjoyed Boyle's tragic story and even style of writing. I loved the short sentences throughout the story, not lingering on and on, and allowing each short line to sound even more profound, filled with emotion, yet extremely straight forward. I really enjoyed the realistic tone and reactions from each character. I found them very effective and relatable.
       This tragic story is about a high school couple, Jeremy and China, who seem to possess a deep sense of "love" of what they think love should be for each other, which for them was extremely physical as it is for most hormonal high schoolers in relationships, than many experience in such a short amount of living. However, through the story, we do get an insight into their relationship and it does seem as though they contain a deep connection maybe due to their physicality, nonetheless, their connection is somewhat emotional. Jeremy and China seem to be the cliche version of a senior couple-- China as the intelligent, diligent, and over achieving student accepted to her first choice college, while Jeremy is the laid back, easy-going, but also a very bright guy. As the story progresses, we find that they are forced into a dilemma, China is pregnant and wants to keep the baby, but doesn't want anyone to know she's pregnant. The ultimate theme I got from the story is that no matter how much you love someone, actions have consequences. You cannot solely act without thinking of the repercussions.
       There were consequences when Jeremy and China had sex--China became pregnant. There were consequences when China decided to birth the baby and keep it a secret--an undoubtedly dangerous birthing. There were consequences when Jeremy threw their baby into the dumpster--China and Jeremy were arrested. Several of these lifelong consequences could have been prevented, if only they had thought them through more cautiously and rationally. Yet, on the other hand, they are only eighteen years old. Barely legal, but old enough to know right from wrong.
       Along with the theme of consequences, I also see the important insights into a pregnant teen's thoughts and her partners. Since the pregnancy rate of high school students is rising, I think this peice is exceptionally relevant to today's society. For many of us, without having experienced a pregnancy through the transition of high school to college, it is easy for us to say "oh, that's tough" or "that sucks." However, through this story, we are able to see and experience the difficulties of dealing with the emotional and physical pains of high school relationships, a pregnancy during freshman year of college, and the confusion of wht to do afterward. This story could definitely be used to help girls and guys going through the same situations to rationally think about the situation they are in, nd the consequences of their actions. Boyle also ties in the theme of love through the story. With each trial, literally and figuratively, Jeremy and China's love for one another proves strong. It is easy to conclude this from the last few lines, "He was Jeremy. He was the love of her life. And she closed her eyes and clung to him as if that were all that mattered."