This Is Us

Love and My Ex-Husband’s Vaseline

The tub of Vaseline tumbled off the shelf of the grocery store, grazing the tops of my feet. It was my first morning back home in Todos Santos — a small town in south Baja — after a short trip back to the states. Despite feeling renewed after a break from the late-August heat, I was hungry, and my lips were a bit chapped.

Remembering I had just polished off my very large, well-loved tub of Vaseline the night before, I swooped it up, tossed my usual bounty in the basket alongside it, handed over my pesos and got in my car where I ripped off my mask to tide myself over with a few almonds and, of course, relieve my dry lips.

My ex-husband and I used to always argue about chapstick. In my college years, I was a fan of anything that would make my lips tingle. Carmex? Yes, please. Venom-infused lip gloss to make my lips swell? Absolutely.

He always shook his head, declaring all non-Vaseline lip products devoid of purpose. “They don’t actually hydrate your lips,” he’d protest. “It’s like a lip drug, requiring frequent reapplication. Vaseline actually hydrates your lips.”

Rolling my eyes, I’d apply more venomous lip gloss.

His practicality always felt like a father-like shield from the desires of my inner-world. Despite being an incredibly good man…