B is for Baggage

Jerome, AZ; Photo Credit: Doree Weller

I don’t know if it’s still on TV, but a few years ago, I discovered a wonderful (awful) show called Baggage, by Jerry Springer.  It was a dating show, and on this show, three women or men would have three different sized bags.  Each one of them would reveal one secret at a time to their prospective date by opening the bags, from smallest to largest secret.  I shamefully enjoyed this show.

One of the things I liked about the show (other than the pure train wreck value), is the same reason I like PostSecret.  We all have baggage.  We all have things we don’t want others to know, things that weigh us down.  But the thing about baggage is that it makes us who we are.  The interesting quirks, the skeletons in the closet are part of what shape us.

In books, baggage can be some of the most interesting parts of the story.  What would have Jane Eyre been without Rochester’s secret wife?  In On Little Wings by Regina Sirois, young Jennifer finds out that her mother is not an only child, which spurs her on a search for the “truth.”  In Beautiful Disaster, by Jamie McGuire, Abby has a huge secret she never wants anyone to know.  Even though she tries to hide it, the secret eventually finds her.  In each of these examples, the secret is eventually revealed, and everything turns out okay. I like the concept of secrets in fiction, and I like them even better when the truth is revealed.  It adds depth and interest to characters.  It adds a touch of humanness and gives me something to relate to.  No, I’m not hiding an insane wife in my attic, but when Rochester eventually tells his story, I felt sorry for his being duped by everyone around him, and I could relate to that moment when he realized that he was forever stuck with the consequences of a bad decision.

“The things you want are always possible; it is just that the way to get them is not always apparent. The only real obstacle in your path to a fulfilling life is you, and that can be a considerable obstacle because you carry the baggage of insecurities and past experience.”
-Les Brown

Green Eyed Monster

I recently visited my parents and was treated to something I haven’t seen in years… The Jerry Springer show.  I really wasn’t even aware that it was still on.  I thought that was something that faded into oblivion years ago.  I know you’re going to be shocked, but on the show, this girl was sleeping with this guy, and his girlfriend found out, and the women fought.  But the cheater girl also had a boyfriend, so he came out, and then the guys fought.  I’ve just described every episode of Jerry Springer ever.

I’ve never understood that show.  I always yell at the TV, “just dump him/ her!”  I don’t understand why you’d fight over someone who cheated on you.  If they want someone else, wish them well and move on.

I’m not a big “jealousy” kind of person.  Most of my friends are male, and typically, my husband’s friends are female.  Jealousy (in my opinion), is a big waste of time.

It’s really just not that big of a deal.  Be with the person you want to be with, and if you don’t want to be with them anymore, don’t.  It’s not the 1500’s, and you don’t have to separate from a church in order to separate from a significant other (didja like the Henry the VIII reference?)

Still, something about Jerry Springer must appeal to people since it’s been on the air since 1991.  (I looked it up after my initial expression of disbelief).  I don’t have to understand it to know that sensational stuff sells.

Post inspired by The Daily Post.