When life gives you lemons, put them in a bowl for decoration, and make yourself a piña colada. Ha
(And if you don’t drink alcohol, make a non-alcoholic one!)
Too many lemons, makes for an inconsistent blogger. I had too many lemons this week.
Isn’t it amazing how our personal relationships in life can give us bumps in the road, sometimes knocking us off our path?
My grandparents were married 76 years. (My grandmother passed away recently, she lived to be one hundred years old. My grandfather, also one hundred, misses her dearly.) Growing up I got to observe my grandparents relationship in action. It wasn’t perfect but it was real, and it was good. They lived the American Dream. My grandmother could be a bit feisty, my grandfather could be a little reserved and quiet. And somehow, through it all, you knew they loved each other and they were committed to each other, 76 years, 100 years of living – truly a miracle.
Michael and I got into fight this past week.
There are the healthy kind of fights, the kind where you tug each other back and forth in a good way, and then there are the unhealthy kind.
We had one of the unhealthy kind. Ugh.
I don’t want to be a downer on this blog. I want it to uplift and inspire, but I think it’s important to be transparent and honest. (Remember, we’re truth seekers right?)
I’ve had people ask me, “How do you do it? How do you go after your dream of writing, and pay the bills, and manage the kids?”
Well …
It’s rough. I’ll be honest. Especially when it comes to personal relationships. (Another reason why I have this blog, to hopefully shed light on my whole deal.)
Being in the entertainment industry, storytelling, is probably the toughest life paths one can take. You have to be here for the right reasons, the right intentions. It’s okay to be here for a bit, to learn and grow, but if you’re delusional about your reality, and aren’t going anywhere, then there will come a time for you to move on. We’ve witnessed this many times in observing others, and discuss it often.
We’re in it to win it, we know we belong here.
Before Michael and I met each other we had been married to other people for nearly a decade. He married at 20, I married at 21. We both grew in conservative worlds throughout our twenties, and arrived at similar conclusions by the time we arrived at USC for grad school, because of these experiences. (Hence, why we click and get along so well.)
So we know how a relationship works, how to avoid the pitfalls, how to keep things fresh, and how to keep our individual identities.
But even then, sometimes, the occasional bumps will hit. It’s bound to happen, especially as artists in the toughest sport on the planet.
It’s how we handle the bumps, the lemons, that define us.
I hate the unhealthy kind. They are emotionally exhausting and time consuming. But they happen. Not often, but they do. We’re stronger and better because of it, with more material to pull from.
And I guess that’s what makes us human, right? If we’re going to be storytellers for our generation and the ones coming up, its important we tell them like it is. Art imitates life and life imitates art.
Back on the path, with piña coladas in hand.
When was a time you had too many lemons and didn’t know how to handle them? Do you have a recipe of what you made with them and how you handled it?
Writing is therapy.
xx,
AEJ
