Tuesday, February 1, 2011

Success is the Sweetest Revenge

Reel and real. What do these blondes have in common?


Sure you’ve heard this line a couple of times but what does it actually mean? The movie Legally Blonde  is what comes first to mind.


The lead character, Elle Woods, was dumped by her boyfriend because she was too blonde and not ideal for his political career in the future.


Pathetic as Elle can be, she also applied for Harvard so she can win him back and to prove him wrong that she’s a dumb blonde. Little did Elle know that his ex-boyfriend just got engaged with another student, whose influential roots can boost his less than impressive track record. 


So there are two brick walls that are in front of Elle. First, his ex-boyfriend’s fiancé whose making her life miserable and second, surviving Harvard Law School. In real life, I don’t know what most people will do in this kind of situation. 


If you are truly a vengeful person and would like them to suffer, you might as well put the girl out of the picture- set her up for a crime or be as annoying as can be to destroy their relationship. 


But ideally, I guess all of us would want to take the higher road. Acceptance and forgiveness, although underrated at times, will really set you free of a vicious cycle of grudge, hate and rampage. 

 
Softie on the outside but a toughie on court


Elle is a fighter and she proved it the first instance by getting a high SAT score and overcoming people’s airhead stereotype of her.


But the difference she has with those who never stop fighting until havoc is served, is that she realised after being pathetic that not getting what you want is not the end of the world. 
 
Not all battles are worth fighting for, especially if it's a lose-lose situation. 


Isn’t there more pride and glory in graduating the top of her class rather than wrecking a made-for-convenience relationship? 


Elle may be a fictional character but her formula to success in reality is tried and tested, it works. 


Just like another blonde,  a real person in the name of Katie Piper- I think is one of the most courageous people out there who is currently teaching the world that not even an acid thrown at your face can make you an ugly person if what you have inside is already beautiful to start with.
 
The mastermind of the tragic acid attack was a boyfriend she just started dating- who’s paranoid that she’d tell the police that he sexually assaulted her.



Katie Piper at that time was a model and TV presenter.


How she looks is an important part of her job, and amongst other things like love and respect from her boyfriend- her angelic face was taken away from her. 


In May 2009, after a year of living in the shadows, she went public and told her story through a documentary film.  


More than spreading seeds of awareness, she’s now working on the Katie Piper Foundation. It's a charity dedicated to provide support to other burn victims with a vision of creating an advanced burn and scar management and rehabilitation clinic in the UK.


Some people have had a hard time feeling sympathy towards her because they think it’s her fault of choosing the wrong guy whom she only met in facebook. 


How can you go in a hotel with a guy and expect no intimacy to happen?  And to think they were only dating for 2 weeks. No doubt, she has placed herself in a situation to be raped.


But for me, I think it’s not my right to judge her; nobody deserves an acid attack for trusting too easily and attracting the wrong kind of guy.


A bad decision has been made but she chose to move on with her life. I admire her for capitalising on a treacherous event which to others may seem like death that needs no revival.


Her attacker’s motive on destroying her face might have been out of selfishness, so that so no man could ever want her again after him, but he was wrong in thinking that her physical appearance is her greatest asset.  


He did not take away anything important, in fact, what has now emerged is a more beautiful person. Her strength in facing adversity, positive attitude and dedication in helping other victims makes her success stand out in today’s superficial world.  

2 comments:

  1. Thanks for sharing us great ideas, Kat! :)Great insights to ponder about and bring along with us everyday

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  2. That's good to hear Marisse. This makes writing so rewarding- when you plant a seed and little by little, it grows and bears some fruit of inspiration.

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