In a moving farewell tribute to her late husband Lou Reed, Laurie Anderson has reflected on the deep love, respect and camaraderie that characterized their long relationship.
"For 21 years, we tangled our minds and hearts together," Anderson wrote of the legendary musician in the heartbreaking tribute, which will appear in the Nov. 21 issue of Rolling Stone.
Reminiscing on the blossoming of their relationship in the 1990s, Anderson wrote:
Lou and I played music together, became best friends and then soul mates, traveled, listened to and criticized each other's work, studied things together (butterfly hunting, meditation, kayaking). We made up ridiculous jokes; stopped smoking 20 times; fought; learned to hold our breath underwater; went to Africa; sang opera in elevators; made friends with unlikely people; followed each other on tour when we could; got a sweet piano-playing dog; shared a house that was separate from our own places; protected and loved each other.
As intimate as they were, Anderson, who married Reed in 2008, admits the partnership took a lot of work and compromise.
"Like many couples, we each constructed ways to be -- strategies, and sometimes compromises, that would enable us to be part of a pair," she said. "Sometimes we lost a bit more than we were able to give, or gave up way too much, or felt abandoned. Sometimes we got really angry. But even when I was mad, I was never bored. We learned to forgive each other."
Reed died on Oct. 27 from complications following a liver transplant. He was 71.
In an obituary remembering her husband, Anderson wrote that Reed spent his last days at home in Springs, N.Y., where he was busy "being happy and dazzled by the beauty and power and softness of nature."
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