I can remember several times being asked the question, “If you could give one piece of advice, what would it be?” As a younger person, I naturally responded with something meaningless and cliché, “Follow your heart.” “Be yourself.” “Stand for something or you’ll fall for anything.” Those days, though, are long gone right along with my natural hair color; Days and a color that I’ll always remember yet never to which I’ll return.
After experiencing the harsh reality of adulthood, many things have changed; my priorities, the way I spend or don’t spend my money, my friends, my career pursuit, and we must not forget that the advice I’d like to pass on has most certainly undergone severe modifications as well.
“Stand on your own two feet.”
Yes, you heard it from the girl who drives to her grandparents’ house every day during break for lunch, calls her favorite fashionista to ask which shoes will go best, and still goes to the service center to have her car maintained. I can’t do everything by myself but I’m learning, and while I learn, I know where to go to get things done.
I have a mental picture album of the way I foresaw my life from the eyes of myself as a little girl. I’ve pictured myself as Princess Belle; finding the Prince who seems a Beast but has a heart that beats with nothing but love. Cinderella’s story has played time again with my very own feet sporting the glass slippers. I’ve even imagined being a blonder, more western-hemisphere, version of Jasmine, overcoming obstacles all for the sake of love.
Inevitably, though, with age comes a steady stream of wisdom. I was more disappointed by the revelation that fairy tales don’t exist than I was by the truth that Santa Claus isn’t real. I learned at relatively early age that ‘make believe’ isn’t a cultural element that I’ll be passing on to my children.
That’s when I thought I’d arrived at adulthood; when I discovered that there are true-life stories of devoted, loving, lifelong couples. First to mind are my Anna and Poppy. Granted, I’ve put them on pedestal and deemed them Earth’s only sole slices of perfection, they have proven that whatever it takes for a man and woman to last, works. Then, my mind jumps to Cathey and Freddy, the two most genuinely sincere people around. I’ve never seen such an incredible exchange of mutual respect, trust, and admiration between two hearts. I’m sure there is a slew of others, but these are the couples who capture my attention. They stand as a testament of hope for those who disbelieve in that thing called ‘love.’
And again, wisdom reins, and common sense reminds me that I’m a constituent of a new generation. A generation where love no longer exists, where trust is obsolete, and where long term commitment is extinct. I live in era where movies are no longer produced in black and white and the principles of relationships have become as blurred as the skylines of all major, metropolitan cities.
Nowadays, relationships operate much like those old AOL trial CD’s you could pick up for free at your local Wal-Mart. Use it until the free time runs out, then head back to the store to pick up another. Men and women are equally guilty. It’s a dog eat dog world where only the strong survive. That’s the key; strength. You find your own means to build your emotional muscles and you go with it. For me, that avenue comes by relying on nobody, trusting in no one, and keeping everyone at a healthy arm’s length away.
“Stand on your own two feet.”
Oh, and of course, make sure your feet are fabulously covered.
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