Yes, I saw it. You know of what I speak. I did drool; I did swoon, over a vampire and a werewolf. But it wasn’t just the bad boys that I was swooning over, although the lack of attire did help me along a bit, it was the idea of true love. This is a culture where we are looking on the outside for internal gratification. How would capitalism work if we all weren’t flawed and unloved enough to need products to fix us? Twilight isn’t about the monsters, but about being adored by not one, but two hard to get bad boys. Bella completely breaks down when left by each of these magnificently beautiful creatures. She doesn’t have it in her to live without the love of a man. Now why do we leave the theater desperately wanting true love to triumph? It is an old story and one I actually unconsciously wrote into my own short story, feminist that I am. Cinderella has it bad, but then the Prince falls in love and she is happy. Beauty falls in love with the beast, Ariel with the fish guy, and on and on throughout history. Now Bella does fly across the sea to rescue her true love, yes, they had to give us something, but young girls are still raised to fall in love and live happily ever after. Mattel needed to make Ken right? So what does this all mean? I don’t know. I left the theater wishing for true love and a happy fairy tale ending. I left the theater feeling somehow inadequate. I left the theater needing something, what, a new sweater or a diet coke? What I left with was a hole that only I can fill, because I do not need a man to make me whole. But, you say, but, Bella is adored and worshipped by two men. Maybe that’s what we need, someone who knows how truly fabulous we are and acknowledge it. And may they be shirtless when they do.
● About Me
I wrote and published my first blog post on May 26, 2009. I was about to turn 36 and had been accepted to Mount Holyoke College as a non-traditional student, on my way to completing a Bachelor of Arts in English with a minor in Medieval Studies. I had managed, finally, to know what general direction I was traveling. As a self proclaimed voracious reader I knew that I needed a vocation that would allow me to engage daily with words: reading words, writing words, and hearing words. I also needed to eat, so I navigated my way to a teaching position and I began to fine tune my craft. I love to teach and I love my students, but I also needed to continue to hone my own literary technique, voice, and style. I continued my education in order to delve deeper into literature, making connections, and most definitely, writing. I gained more confidence as a reader as well as a writer of both creative and analytical text. That first blog post in 2009 is short, the writing average, and the topic mundane, but as I continued to learn from other writers I began to understand that to become a better writer I needed to write more. Each time I write and release a poem, a post, or a story, I hone my skills. I invite you along for the ride, for this journey of mine as I attempt to wrangle a wealth of ideas and competing directions into an organized freshly paved path to publication. I might get distracted along the way, but sometimes those detours lead us to amazing views and new friends.
Laura Smith Writer 
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