Jamie

Recently, I am hooked on Nicholas Sparks' novels. The funny thing is, I used to 'despise' romance, because they usually paint a very unattainable image of love, something so blissful but yet unreal, at least to me. They always have happy endings and it didn't seem like it would happen in reality.

I guess age made the difference. I start to appreciate the little acts of love between the protagonists. Well, I may not have read widely enough to judge romance novels, but Sparks really surprised me. He has a way of pricking that simple, innocent love that I have deep in my heart. I learnt a lot about what it meant to love especially after reading A Walk to Remember. This is one fiction that made me shed bucket-loads of tears. Spoilers ahead; you have been warned.

Jamie Sullivan. My new role model. She is simple, leads a simple life, and is easily contented. At first glance, she might seem unrealistic, especially in the 21st century. But I choose to believe that Jamies exist somewhere in the world. She is not perfect; she had her doubts and was sometimes afraid. But it was her innocence that made her beautiful. Don't get me wrong, this innocence has nothing to do with ignorance. This innocence is simply accepting what God's plan is, trying to do her best on what is right, and believing that everyone has a little kindness in them. I want to be like her too.

Jamie showed me what it means to love one another. Devout Christians are usually labelled as hypocrites as they tend to be devout on the surface while judging others for not obeying God's commands. It's like the Pharisees you know, and I'm sometimes guilty of that. But Jamie, on the other hand, show no signs of judgmental behavior. (Okay, you can say that since the novel was written in 3rd person, I would never know what Jamie really felt.) She did not try to educate Landon about Bible teachings, never forced Landon to know this and that about God, but her character, actions and behavior revealed what it means to love others with God's heart. One of the part that touched me was Landon's realization of Jamie's forgiving love. Towards the end of Jamie's journey, her friends came to apologize for their rowdy and insensitive behavior, and instead of resenting them, Jamie held them in her embrace, described in the book as "a gesture of forgiveness". I think one of the part that really moved me is the witness of Landon's transition as a boy, to a mature, loving man. Jamie's simple love for everything under God's creation transformed him, and he was able to forgive and love the things he used to hate i.e. his dad.

The novel has several quotes from the Bible, and I enjoyed them. One of which is from Corinthians, something that I have been trying to learn and understand.

Love is patient, love is kind. It is never jealous. Love is never boastful or conceited. It is never rude or selfish. It does not take offense and is not resentful. Love takes no pleasure in other people's sins, but delights in the truth. It is always ready to excuse, to trust, to hope, and to endure whatever comes.

Jamie, despite being fictional, gave me a glimpse of how it is like to love with God's heart. The fact that she was the Reverend's daughter made it even more inspiring. I'm really bad with words and I cannot pen down the exact thoughts I craft in my head. But I'm really so inspired by this novel. In one way or another, I was wondering if I would ever influence someone so much like what Jamie did to Landon. I hope with God's power that I may one day do so.

Anyway, I caught the movie yesterday and I have to say I was so disappointed. The film omitted out many parts that I taught was crucial to its beauty, and they painted Jamie in a very 'American', college-kids way. But well, I still cried like mad with tissues and dustbin by my side. I remembered choking and feeling so uncomfortable, like there was despair stuck at my chest. HAHA I'm such an emotional animal. But omg, the movie was so bad because it felt as if Landon fell in love after seeing how beautiful (physically) she was. Mehh. I don't like.