Fabulously Ever After

Last weekend I, wishing I had my entourage of fabulous women friends to share the experience of seeing a classic chick flick with, went to see Sex and the City - the movie by myself. Geography and busy schedules kept me from getting my wish but I could not wait to see the movie version of a tv show that has inspired me and served as therapy to my sometimes weary soul.

Around the time of my fairly recent break up, I ordered Season 1 of Sex and the City from Amazon. Instantly, I was hooked. I was enamoured with the storyline, women in their thirities living in New York City trying to find a suitable partner while experiening all the challeneges and mishaps of dating and relationships many of us face today. Strong, successful women who celebrate being single and fabulous in a culture where women in their thirties are more or less expected to be married and having children. I feel that this tv show is so important. It sheds light on many issues women have never felt safe talking about before. The voice of Carrie Bradshaw (played by Sarah Jessica Parker) who plays a writer on the tv show, through her sex column asks real life questions so many of us struggle with such as 'Do you have to play games to make a relationship work?', 'Can there be sex without politics?', 'Is timing everything?', 'Is honesty really the best policy?', 'Are we getting wiser or just older?' The threaded theme of the story is the glue of female friendship.

As I sat in the dark movie theater, I was relieved that I had come to this movie alone because I found myself surprisingly overcome with emotion. I cried during much of the movie. I cried for the love that I have lost, for the strength that I have found in myself and for the deep longing I feel to be reconnected to my girlfriends as we once were. I cried for the unfairness of life circumstances and for finding humor through it all. I realized it was the first time I had let myself go like that in a long time. I stayed through the credits because I became aware of those around me and felt slightly embarrssed. The strong bond you feel between these women on the screen recaptures that sense of togetherness and belonging I once felt with my 'chick clique'. Then somehow, life gets in the way. If you manage to stay close with just a few friends through the years, consider yourself lucky.

Afterwards, I put myself back together and as if the movie had subminially brainwashed me, I suddenly had the intense urge to go shopping. And just like that, I got my stride back.