Some movies surprise you.

I'm not really sure why I decided to pick up the DVD of "Love and Other Drugs," but it was far from being the romantic comedy I had expected. Jake Gyllenhaal is only my second-favorite Gyllenhaal, but I do like Anne Hathaway and feel like she has shown some decent comedy chops at times.

<a href="http://mikerappaport.net/onevoice/wp-content/uploads/2011/03/love_and_other_drugs_wallpaper_03.jpg"><img class="alignright size-medium wp-image-944" title="love_and_other_drugs_wallpaper_03" src="http://mikerappaport.net/onevoice/wp-content/uploads/2011/03/love_and_other_drugs_wallpaper_03-300x187.jpg" alt="" width="300" height="187" /></a>The movie started out funny, as Gyllenhaal's character tries to make a success of himself as a rep for a pharmaceutical company.

It's a fairly sexy movie too, but it takes a serious turn when we realize Hathaway's character is suffering from Stage One Parkinson's Disease. She pushes potential boyfriends away when there's a chance of emotional involvement, possibly because she's afraid she will eventually lose them.

The story of course becomes much more serious, as what was supposed to be just a casual relationship deepens.

It's difficult to think of spending your life caring for someone with a chronic, degeneration condition. It is, however, an important part of love. Because real love -- true love, so to speak -- has only a little to do with lust and a lot to do with caring. My mother was my father's primary caregiver throughout the last five years or so of his life, and as difficult as it must have been, I have no doubt she would have gladly continued it, or possibly have done even more, if it had meant keeping him alive longer.

That's because love is about <em>always</em> being there, consistently putting the other person's needs ahead of your own. Staying on your feet when your legs are so tired they feel like blocks of wood. Talking with them even though you're exhausted and want nothing more than just to sleep,

Always.

In the present and in the future.

Love can be a lot of work, but there's no work that is more fulfilling.

Love ennobles us.