Two Words with the Power to Change Your Life -- What If?
The ‘What If’ Journey
In this digital age, love letters, particularly the handwritten ones, have become a rarity.
The fact that they are rare makes you want to treasure them more, if you’re lucky enough to receive one.
Letters I believe are also more personal because they are handwritten.
You can almost imagine the emotions that come with every loop in each consonant or vowel.
Shaky handwriting could be a sign of nervousness as emotions are transformed into words – words that someone never had the courage to voice out.
And so he or she had a little help from the power of the pen.
Letter writing brings back the romance of words, a powerful tool that men once used – and sometimes still do – to woo their lady loves.
I’m Reminded By …
It also makes me think of the 2010 movie, Letters to Juliet and the pivotal letter that drove Claire to find her first and true love, Lorenzo:
Dear Claire,
“What” and “If” are two words as non-threatening as words can be. But put them together side-by-side and they have the power to haunt you for the rest of your life:
What if?
What if?
What if?
I don’t know how your story ended but if what you felt then was true love, then it’s never too late. If it was true then, why wouldn’t it be true now? You need only the courage to follow your heart. I don’t know what a love like Juliet’s feels like: love to leave loved ones for, love to cross oceans for, but I’d like to believe if I ever were to feel it, that I’d have the courage to seize it.
And Claire, if you didn’t, I hope one day that you will.
All my love, Juliet
Repeat After Me:
[Tweet “ou need only the courage to follow your heart”]
The contents of this lovely letter was compelling enough for the elderly Claire to look for the writer, a young American woman named Sophie.
She also decided to follow Sophie’s advice to seek out Lorenzo Bartolini, her long-lost love.
Ever Had Those Words Yourself?
When was the last time you ever received a love letter that’s been painstakingly handwritten?
When did someone’s words touch you so much that they led you on a journey of self-discovery and love?
In Claire’s case, “what if” became the catalyst for her search to find the answers that she has been looking for all her life. Never mind that she is already a grandmother.
All that mattered was following her heart and believing in true love. As it turned out, she had her happy ending when she found and wed Lorenzo.
Make It Real?
You may think that stories like these only happen in the movies.
But they have happened in real life, only on a less grander scale and it didn’t involve traveling to Italy.
As we are living in a digital age, most people would use Facebook or an online area code directory to search for that person who once – or still – meant the world to them.
- Don’t set your expectations too high or you might end up disappointed.
- Be open to the possibilities – both sad and happy.
If you don’t try to explore “what ifs”, you might end up wondering the rest of your life about the road not taken.
If you must regret something, make it something worthy of regret.
- Could you spend the time writing a love letter yourself?
- Do you think it is actually doing?
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