What Scarlett O'Hara taught me

We just finished watching this old favourite - Gone with the Wind. Firstly, you should know I love this movie. Watching it with my mom on a winter day is one of my most treasured childhood memories. Another one is eating home made milk chocolate and watching the Tom & Jerry episode where Tom gets very rich. I am not sure why I remember this particular moment from my childhood since I was watching Tom & Jerry all the time and eating the home made chocolate my mom prepared several times per month. It is just stuck in my head as a moment in time in my life when I felt safe, happy and content.

Going back to the movie - I have probably seen Gone with the Wind 1,000 times. I have never read the book so I can't comment on that but I can quote the movie freely. And one of my favourite quotes comes from Scarlett and is the phrase she repeats to herself every time life hurts and things get difficult:

"I will not think about this now, I will think about it tomorrow."

This mantra resonates with me on several levels. I have also been known to avoid thinking about problems in the vague hope that they will disappear before I start worrying about them. Sometimes it has worked but more often than not this strategy breeds disaster. Yes, you should avoid thinking about things you cannot control like "will it rain on the day of my garden party" but a lot of things in life you can actually control and change. So by all means, think about those issues, think long and hard and then make up your mind and act. And when life is overwhelming and you can't figure out the solution and are spinning in circles then breathe, relax and think about it some other time. Scarlett was a secret Yogi, I tell you.

Scarlett is such a strong character, very independent, egoistic, in love with life and prone to manipulating the people around her into doing what she wants them to. All of these characteristics make for a good heroine but are actually off putting in real life. Even though, to be fair, if you look like Vivien Leigh you can probably get away with almost anything even in today's world. I really really love her strength and focus - once she sets her mind on something she goes after it until she gets it. Unfortunately, she is very childish and gets into a lot of trouble...like marrying a kid and an old guy as Rhett puts it. Not a lot of fun for such a vivacious lady.

The other thing I love about the movie is the complicated love story between Scarlett and Rhett. They are both very complex personalities and very egoistic. They use each other throughout the movie and at first she treats him horribly and then when he has had enough he starts punishing her while trying to leave her. Which is of course just about the time when she starts realising she loves him and wants him back. Have you seen this plot play out in real life? I am convinced it describes very well several relationships I have witnessed. It is sad really because I have to believe that if two people love each other they will find a way. But life/Gone with the Wind doesn't seem to always work out that way. Is it pride that gets in the way, is it simply human nature to want what you can't have, to love what you cannot experience? Or is it that one of the two people is not telling the truth and doesn't really love the other one as much as they claim? I guess we will never know...

Question:

Tell me, what childhood memories do you have that make you feel all warm and cozy and very safe?