Adaptation

I love that movie, Adaptation. I expected to kinda like it, but I LOVED it. I found it extremely clever and yet more proof that Charlie Kaufman was a creative genius. It contained a lot of life lessons, including one that means a lot to me now.

There’s a scene where Chris Cooper’s backing out of the driveway, and he gets t-boned. This kills both his in-laws and knocks out his teeth. His wife then leaves him. Meryl Streep, whom he’s telling this story, proceeds to relate to the ex-wife, and explains that this is her chance to start over without judgment. I think Cooper says, “Well I judge her,” but I could be making that up.

The fact is my fiancée left me, and I should focus on the fact I’m lucky she left. It’s extremely painful, and I won’t lie about that. It’s particularly painful because it means I was prepared to marry someone who would leave me as soon as we encountered a challenge. To be candid, I don’t need or want that in my life. Even if it ends up being manageable, it certainly isn’t helpful.

Anyway, I always Loved Adaptation, but I thought this was just a fictional movie. Surely I would never propose marriage to someone who saw me as disposable!

And yet, here we are.

To approximate a line from Napoleon Hill, this time the joke’s on me, but I will take with me this experience, and I will use it for good. I will use it to grow and to learn. Maybe this time the joke’s on me, but it won’t be on me again.

And to bastardize a little bit, I don’t want to make anyone hurt or make anyone pay. Rather, I want to grow and to be more discerning in the future. I wish the woman who said she’d marry me was certain in her convictions, but if she’s not, I’m better without her.