Find Your Gatsby

Like most twenty-something-year-old women I occasionally drink wine and watch chick flicks. Not in a sad "why can't that be me" way, but in a more analytical way. If you know me, you know I love analyzing the human psyche (hint: that's why my major is human ecology!). Last night's movie was The Great Gatsby, perfect timing considering a new age "roaring twenties" has begun in my life (the year 2020 and being in my 20s!). If you haven't read the book or seen the movie you might miss a few important cues i'm about to discuss in this article, so start there because I will be doing a lot of spoilers!

For all my single ladies out there i'm sure you just finished enduring the holiday season hearing your friends and family members ask #1. if you have a boyfriend and if not #2. why?! As someone who has spent the last 3 years being the only single sibling and the only one who's about to graduate college without getting married, I FEEL YOUR PAIN. Sure, I've been on dates and i've met a lot of nice guys and a few jerks, but i'm just not ready to settle down. I also haven't found my Gatsby yet. A man who pursues me in a crowd of a thousand people. A man who makes it feel like a party no matter where we are. A smart, charismatic, hospitable man! Someone who strives to provide for me emotionally and financially. If you've seen the movie you know that Jay did not immediately marry Daisy because he knew he could not give her the world she grew up in. The world she deserved. Okay, so maybe he gained financial success in a sketchy way (this is fictional remember) and that's not the point.

The point is Daisy didn't wait for him. She married the first bachelor she found. One who on the outside looked like everything Mr. Gatsby had promised her. Spoiler alert.... Tom Buchanan was a cheating man. Who would have guessed the former Yale football superstar born with a silver spoon wasn't as honorable as he portrayed (I've seen the type). Later on, Jay Gatsby makes a reappearance into Daisy's life, sadly, too late.

This made me contemplate every great love story I've ever read or watched and how, most of the time, the girl settles before she meets the man of her dreams. Think about it. The Notebook! At least in that story Allie and Noah end up together, but they are only promised a limited amount of "good" years due to Allie's Alzheimer's disease. Maybe it's because I grew up with divorced parents, but I'd really love to do it right the first time (no offense mom & dad, xoxo)!

So, the next time your family or friends bombard you with questions about your relationship status, or you feel pressured because you're aging, or you see the thousand engagements being posted on Facebook... remember...

Wait for your Gatsby,

B