Allowing yourself to be seen is the first step to truly feeling loved. These little lies one might tell to be appear more alluring rob the individual of feeling loved and often turns self-destructive.
Clear-eyed love ... do you think it is possible? An thought-provoking write, for sure, John.
If it is, I'm a work in progress - but as we get older we get honester - and that's something :)
I guess I am lucky because I have always gone with honesty is the best policy, but I have been on the receiving end of this kind of thing ... I think if the cons understood we often know they are doing it, they'd stop. More people are actually turned off than manipulated. I once said to a guy ... just because I don't call BS, doesn't mean I don't smell it. Politeness is often confuses with gullibility.
BTW ... we are all works on progess;)