Reflecting on Our Own Relationships After the Taylor Swift-Travis Kelce Engagement

Travis Kelce and Taylor Swift announced their engagement a month ago. This news can be a cause for true reflection on the nature and purpose of love. 

The most famous couple on the face of the earth announced their engagement via social media on August 26. The public nature of their love story has captivated hundreds of millions of people. From the NFL to ESPN to magazine racks to the largest grossing musician tour of all time, Swift and Kelce are everywhere in the news.  

There are positives and negatives to take away from the mass hysteria about their relationship. They both seem to have become and admit that they have become better because of their betrothed. In the ”New Heights” podcast hosted regularly by Travis and his brother Jason Kelce, Swift made an unusual appearance speaking about their relationship.  

Swift explained that “when there is not a camera on us, we’re just two people that are in love.” Despite their fame, the coverage of their romance has appeared to humanize them in many ways. Travis spoke about the way Taylor has made him handle the spotlight better and how he is amazed by her creativity. Swift mentioned that the Kansas City Chief’s star is simply the most fun person to be around, and you can see in her eyes that she feels known and loved by him.  

A possible negative to the grand stage of their relationship is that those outside of the spotlight may compare their love to the Swift-Kelce love. It is critical that all those tempted to do so remember certain truths about human love and our faith. First, no one’s love can be summed up or truly defined by a few pictures or a podcast episode. No one’s relationship is perfect because human beings are flawed and in constant need for renewal and forgiveness. 

Second and intrinsically connected to the first point is the fact that true love is centered on the exclusive, sacrificial and loyal commitment to choose the beloved’s good over one’s own. The pictures of the Kelce-Swift proposal are in a beautifully abundant garden. It is a scene out of the movies or a magazine, and the moment of one’s proposal should be a showcase of the abundance of love between man and woman. However, the love story begins when the challenges of remaining in a faithful relationship of sacrifice begin.  

This means that Catholics must rely on the graces of the Sacrament of Matrimony to carry them through the storms of love. Perhaps, the public nature of the Taylor-n-Travis relationship can serve as an opportunity to gauge how one measures his or her own romantic relationship or marriage. Is the time spent together with your beloved taken up mostly by social media scrolling and binge-watching Netflix, or is it built on the depth of conversation that is centered on growing more deeply in love with the other? 

How often do we spend time praying for our spouse or loved one? Do we offer prayers and daily sacrifices for their good and in preparation for loving them when it is challenging? Are we in the habit of forgiving our partner or of holding on to grudges from past mistakes? 

All of these questions can help ground us in the relationship that we are committed to rather than become swept up in the lavish love story of the rich and the famous. Truly, this is the takeaway of the unavoidable news regarding the Kelce-Swift engagement. If we can learn from the way they show love to each other and grow from the guidance of the other—great. If we are more concerned with the details of their relationship to the point it takes us away from considering how we are committing to our relationships—then let us shift our focus toward those we have committed ourselves to. 

Doing so will place us inside of the context of trusting in the providence of our Father, who calls us to remain faithful to those around us and invites us to love with the everlasting love of divine communion. For this is the ultimate love story that we are all made for.  

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