Thursday, March 24, 2011

"And such is the fleeting nature of fame."

Nancy French, writing of Elizabeth Taylor’s death in The Corner:

And such is the fleeting nature of fame. Perhaps the most famous movie star (and sex symbol) in history, her death causes barely a ripple amongst entire generations. It should be a gentle reminder to all women — all of us who struggle with those last ten pounds, who don’t even own four-inch heels, and who sometimes despair of glamour while driving three kids to school in a minivan — that legacies are not built on fame or sex or wealth, or even by a Drudge headline on the day of our passing. Our legacies instead our built by the kids in that van and by the husband who’s with you from the moment you wore white and said “I do” to the moment one of you says your final earthly goodbye.

Faithfulness, children, enduring marriage, and stretch marks. They may not be sexy, but they are the true legacies that even the most glamorous, upon reflection, wish they’d had.
Sadly, I am no expert at marriage.  Tried it once, briefly, in my youth and never gave it a go again.  Elizabeth Taylor was married seven times to eight different men.  Unlike me, Taylor's motto was, "If first you don't succeed, try, try, try, try, try, try again.  At some point I think she would have been better off honestly admitting that she just wasn't willing to put out the effort that a lasting marriage deserves. 
 
But more to French's point-I mentioned Taylor's passing to a co-worker whose response was, "Yeah, I think I've heard of her."  Elizabeth Taylor has already been forgotten by those who never really knew her to begin with. 

1 comment:

livermoron said...

She was married eight times to seven different men. Or did she marry two men at once?
lol

She was supremely beautiful.