From Dawson’s Creek:
Joey: So what is the best ending in all of literature? Don’t say Ulysses. Everyone says Ulysses.
Professor David Wilder: That’s easy. Sentimental education by Flaubert.
Joey: And what happens?
Professor David Wilder: Nothing, really. Just two old friends sitting around remembering the best thing that never happened to them.
Joey: How do you remember something that never happened?
Professor David Wilder: Fondly. You see, Flaubert believed that anticipation was the purest form of pleasure… and the most reliable. And that while the things that actually happen to you would invariable disappoint, the things that never happened to you would never dim. Never fade. They would always be engraved in your heart with a sort of sweet sadness.
Joey: That sounds…
Professor David Wilder: Deep?
Joey: Cowardly
I had written these words down in a quote journal years ago. I recently came across a couple of episodes of Dawson’s Creek on TV not too long ago and have started DVR-ing the series to get to the episode with the above scene. I don’t know why this scene resonated with me but there is a certain eloquence about it.
This show ranks amongst the cheesy over-written, way too smart of for their age dramas, akin to Beverly Hills 90210 for the country-side. Yet, I’ve always been a sucker for a certain eloquence. I’m a thinker. When someone, anyone, can put words in a way that make me think and agree or disagree after a certain degree of contemplation, I’m sold. That’s usually how I pick some of my favorite songs or movies… something has been stated in a way that may not be terribly deep but may be delivered in a way that sheds just a little more light on a particular subject.
So now I am thinking about reflection on those things that I desire but can’t seem to attain. I examine people around me who have the things I may want. But I wonder if those things – e.g. marriage, kids, money, etc. – are making those people happy. And would I be happy under any circumstances with those things. Of course, not. That’s why I’m so picky. But it’s so hard to take a step back and realize that all the pieces need to fit a certain way. Forcing the wrong piece of the jigsaw puzzle in somewhere will make the entire picture askew.
