Happy Endings

There are certain stories that people don’t like automatically. Beyond genre and subject objections that is. A story could, based on its statistics and attributes, be well within someone’s tastes and yet they can still despite it. There are many reasons this could happen and, I’m sure, most, if not all, of us are guilty of such bias. I know I am, and I have a perfect example of such loathing.

 

The Perfect Storm has been a focus of my ire since my very first viewing of it. I didn’t have a problem with the story or the plot, just let me get that out of the way. This isn’t a writers pet peeve induced hate. My displeasure was, like many others, focused on the ending. Statements like “It was good… but the ending ruined it!” have been tossed around by many people, including myself, about this story and many others that fall into the same category.

 

As a writer I know, at least logically, that this should NOT be the case. The ending is valid. It is final. It is complete. There shouldn’t be anything wrong with it, but yet there “is.” I have recently, literally in the last couple of days, had an epiphany on why stories like this unfairly draw our wrath. Simply put: we like happy endings.

 

Cinderella, Snow White, and the rest of the Disney Catalog. People enjoy seeing: the princess getting saved, true love discovered, bad guys getting what they deserve, and, most importantly, the Happy Ending.

 

Why are people so focused on the Happy Ending? I believe the answer lies in the alternative. The “NonHappy” Ending is too real, hits too close to home, and, as such, SUCKS. Like I said previously, this is an epiphany brought about over the last couple days. I had the epiphany while sitting in a wheel chair, and watching the light of light fade from a dear family member.

 

My aunt, Sergeant First Class Kimberly Carroll, lost her long battle with leukemia this morning at 8:26am. She was a victim of the very thing that was supposed to save her life: the bone marrow donated to her by her son. She was a victim of the arguably worst sort of marrow rejection: it attacked her body from the inside.

 

While spending as much time as I could at the hospital, along with a good portion of the family, I had the aforementioned epiphany: sometimes, life just isn’t fair. While watching her rapidly waste away, I couldn’t help think “This SUCKS.” And, while trying to make sense of the situation, I made the connection to other stories.

 

People like happy endings because they are fleeting glimpses of what they wish would happen. Beating the odds is called “Beating the odds” for a reason: because most do not. Life, in general, is a far crueler mistress that Disney EVER let on. Most do not get saved in the nick of time. Most do not get brought into the monarchy. And, yes, people actually die.

 

My aunt’s story, much like The Perfect Storm, is not fair, but very real. She received treatment. She had the support from family, friends, and professionals. She was even lucky enough to find a donor inside the family. However, it wasn’t enough even with her long battle.

 

While I say goodbye to my aunt, and continue on with my own living story, I will never forget these lessons. Sometimes, regardless of how much you try, how well things seem to go, and doing everything right, it is still possible to lose. Sometimes, life just sucks, and all you can do is try your best, and hope for your own Happy Ending.


Wes Kirk