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Remembering

After a totally stressful I-want-to-rip-my-hair-out visit to the grocery store with my children a couple of years ago, my car was stolen right before my eyes in the parking lot. As if that wasn't enough to turn an otherwise good day bad, it was also the day John Hughes died.

John Hughes, the man responsible for 85% of my favourite movies, had passed away. The man who made movies we could all relate to (after all who hasn't had to deal with unrequited love?) was no longer alive. Ferris Bueller's Day Off. The Breakfast Club. Sixteen Candles. Pretty in Pink. Sigh. And other classics like National Lampoon's Vacation, Plane, Trains, and Automobiles, Uncle Buck, and of course, my youngest son's favourite movie, Home Alone. All these movies are thanks to John Hughes, who nailed it, with each film. The actors. The sountracks. The humour. The heartache.


The man was a genius. So was Nora Ephron.

Nora Ephron was a brilliant writer, producer, and director who brought us some smart, funny, and memorable movies, like When Harry Met Sally, one of the best romantic comedies EVER. Seriously. It is perfection, complete with flawed characters that you can't help but fall in love with. The movie deals with friendship and romance, and of course, features the legendary Meg Ryan fake orgasm scene. "I'll have what she's having..." Nora Ephron also brought us Sleepless in Seattle and You've Got Mail, two movies I love to pieces. I am a fan of movies with happy endings, and she just delivered.


The unmeasurable grief we feel when we lose a loved one is a pain so huge it can't really be described in words, but the pain we feel when someone dies who is not really in our lives, but a part of our lives hurts the heart as well. When we find out a celebrity we once loved is no longer living it shocks us, and makes us remember.

It also makes me wonder how much more awesome these people could have created, if they were only given more time.

"Above all, be the heroine of your life, not the victim." - Nora Ephron

Comments

Japolina said…
I blogged last night about Nora Ephron. Even though i never met her, I feel sad about her loss.
Kmertikas@gmail.com said…
just last night I was saying to someone, I have so much more to do and paint, I dont want to die, I have no time to die and then your posts appears...so sad.scary
I completely agree that there is a different kind of grief for the loss of creative people who have entertained us and made us think. Artists...actors...writers...directors...musicians... There will never be enough time for their creative talent. They could die tomorrow or 20 years from now and still, it could never be enough.

And then there is the "end of an era" aspect. When people who impacted our style and our views on the world die - we grieve for their loss as well. I didn't understand it when my mother cried the day Jackie O. died. I don't think she ever mentioned an interest in the woman's life before. But now that I'm older - I get it. An end of an era...

The understanding that there will never be another book/song/work of art/movie. The mortality of people so iconic that they shape the way we look at the world. These concepts do evoke feelings of loss.

Just another reality that makes life as we know it so very bittersweet.
Loukia said…
Kate, yes, you're so right! Loved your comment. Can't wait to hug you again in a few weeks! xoxo