Meet Cute

Everyone wants a relationship that happens organically. But what does that even mean, Organically? I've been thinking about this for a few days and this is what I've come up with. . .

There's this thing in the movies called a Meet Cute, which serves the purpose of introducing the boy and girl quickly and efficiently. It happens organically. They bump into each other, someone spills their coffee on the other, they meet at a job interview. Something cliche yet not something that could have been planned. It's as though the universe, fate, chance, whatever you want to call it, puts the two people together where they experience a serendipitous moment.



This is a bad example of a Meet Cute because Kelly planned it. This isn't organic.

Basically what you're looking for is a fairytale situation. It's that moment when Rapunzel smacks Flynn Rider in the face with a frying pan. And then they fall in love and get married and live happily ever after. In these organic situations the people involved aren't manipulating in any way, the events just happen. I'm sure genuine Meet Cutes can happen, but are they likely? I don't think so.

Typically there is some level of manipulation involved in developing a relationship. Don't be fooled by the negative connotation of the word 'manipulation' because it's not always negative and I don't mean it negatively. I'm talking about manipulation in the form of flirting and planning. For example, if there's a guy in your ward you're into and you want him to take notice of you, you might make sure you attend the same gospel doctrine class. You might approach mutual friends when they're talking to him and flash him a smile. If you're into the girl that works the crepe station at the Crossroads, maybe you only get crepes on the days when you see she's working. That's manipulation, that's not really organic. I guess an organic relationship, in my opinion, happens because of something spontaneous. This isn't the only way a successful relationship can happen, but I think it's the kind of thing a lot of us dream about. We all want to live a fairytale romance.

Sometimes I think it would be so romantic and amazing if I had one of these outstanding Meet Cute moments and everything worked out for us, but I don't think it will happen. People are generally cautious and shy, I'm no exception. If some handsome guy holds a door open for me I smile and tell him thanks, continuing on my way. If I drop and pen and someone picks it up, we smile and go on our way. Even meeting a guy in my class doesn't ever go anywhere because I'm too shy to do anything and who knows what's going on in his head. Last semester I was sitting in the library and this guy sitting diagonally from me kept glancing over and making eye contact with me. He jumped into the conversation I was having with a friend a couple times and kept smiling. Before leaving I decided to go out on a limb and tell him his eyes were gorgeous, which they were. Nothing happened, despite all of the lingering glances and the funny comments. What a shame.

Maybe if we put ourselves out there more and try to not fear rejection so much, more organic Meet Cutes will occur.