GEORGE & GRACIE

For as long as I can remember, my mind has always thought of life as a movie. The twists and turns of the plot, mimic the variables life throws at you. The story unfolding is the meat and potatoes of living. The happy ending is like looking back at a life well-lived.  

The guy getting the girl is the same in both stories. 

The story I always used as an example of "what-if" was of George Burns and Gracie Allen. It was a classic Hollywood love story, but the wedding was in Cleveland, costing 20 cents on the parking meter. It was the typical "boy meets girl, girl is engaged to someone else, boy does all he can, for years, to change her mind, girl finally agrees to marry" kind of story, told a thousand times... or not. 

I like how Gracie told it - from the book, Gracie: A Love Story, she says " I am a very lucky woman. I was courted by the youngest, handsomest, most charming, most sought after star in show business - but I still married George because I loved him."

It took some time to convince her, so I always just assumed, if someone didn't like ME at first, I should clearly TRY HARDER. This has carried me through, even though the RESULTS didn't prove to be so successful. 

I was reminded of this recently, and for some reason, I was motivated to read the REAL story of how this great couple came to be. For 30 years, I've used the cliffnotes version of this story to inspire my ENTIRE dating life. Maybe THAT is why it hasn't been going according to the script! 

It's hard to believe that things happened in the past that have been mostly forgotten. Such is the case with Burns & Allen. They made the transition from vaudeville to radio to the movies and then to TV, becoming one of the most famous couples in the world. They knew Presidents, all the iconic figures of old Hollywood, and entertainers from all over. Gracie even had a Presidential campaign that started as a joke but ended up with 50,000 votes! 

There are some that recall George from his movies later in life. He played God, which is a role that makes most actors memorable. He lived to be 100, working right up until a few weeks from his passing. He wrote other books too, and visited Gracie every month after she died. He was WITHOUT her almost as long as he was WITH her. 

I saw in them, the possibilities of romance. Yet it hasn't ever materialized into more for ME. Me being the hard-headed type, I kept at it and just believed good things were going to happen. I believed that eventually, even if my special someone didn't see me like that at first, eventually the goodness would come through.  

After reading this first-hand account, I had a surprising reaction. 

I give up on the storybook endings. 

I will no longer try again and again and again to make someone see there truly CAN be an "us" if they don't.

I will be open to finding a special someone, but only if THEY too are seeking the same. If not, then we will prolly not connect. 

I will keep my feet planted firmly on the ground and not get swept up in the artificial world of attraction. It's happened once too often for me to go through THAT pain again....

As I read this, my first thought is, "what a shame". Followed CLOSELY by "It's about time!!!" 

It will be interesting to see if the future is better or not because of it.