Age of Endearment

I never understood why so many people, celebrities included, have relationships with people who are many years older/younger than they are.

Granted, nine years separated my parents.  But that's nothing compared to some.

George Clooney's wife Amal is younger than him by 17 years.  Catherine Zeta-Jones is 25 years younger than Michael Douglas.  David Hasselhoff is 27 years older than his wife Hayley, meaning that she would've been a baby when he was working on Knight Rider.  And Jeff Goldblum is a whopping 30 years older than Emilie Livingston.  She wasn't even born when Goldblum did Invasion of the Body Snatchers.

Talk about robbing the cradle.

I won't be harsh enough to say that there's no love involved.  I'm sure there is.  All the aforementioned people are clearly smitten with their partners.

But part of the reason is surely a male thing.  The majority of such relationships seem to be older men who are looking for someone to help them regain some measure of youthfulness, or to be able to father children because women their own age are unable (or unwilling) to do so.

From the woman's perspective, being with an older and more established man means that there might be fewer problems from a financial and stability standpoint.

Turning it around, older women who date younger men could be after the youthfulness, excitement, and of course, better performance in the bedroom.

Here's the thing though.  How can people with a large difference in age relate?  They would've been raised differently, exposed to different aspects of life and culture, and have few frames of reference.  As an example, my first husband was almost eight years older than me and we barely understood each other on many levels, from relationship issues to pop culture.

All this isn't to say that relationships between people with such disparities can't work.  It's just that it would take a lot more effort to make it work.  And for some, it's not worth it.