Happily Ever After

Someone once told me that there is truth in fairy tales. The problem with fairy tales, and I tried to explain this to them, is that they end too soon. They are at best, a prolog to the messy chapters to come. Sure Snow White and Prince Charming may do "happily ever after" for a while, but then she comes home to find him banging Rapunzel in the big bed, and you've got a different story. There's no truth in fairy tales, not really. Know how you can tell? They're called "Fairy Tales". 

There's a reason we out grow fairy tales. Let's face it, happily ever after is crock; it's a con, a shell game, for the sucker on the street. They're just words; pretty words; the equally empty bookend to "Once upon a time". But our lives aren't determined by some story book, star crossed destiny. They're not determined by what we're told is "meant to be". Our lives are determined by dumb luck, the actions we take, and the courage we summon in our moments of truth. Unlike fairy tales, real life doesn't come with "The End" in gilded cursive on the very last page. Our stories never end. "Happily ever after" for most of us, is really just the beginning. There's a million "ever afters" in everybody's lives. Because every time you think you've reached the finish line, the gun goes off again.