Hey everyone!
Last week was reading week, which means no classes for the week, so I had some extra time. I took a much-needed trip home, and my mom and I caught up on tv together. We started watching a show called Love Life, which follows Darby (Anna Kendrick) as she navigates life and love There are two seasons with 10 episodes each, but only season 1 follows Darby. Season 1 made such a big impact that I needed to talk about it immediately.
Going home always makes me think about the what-ifs. What if I stayed home for university? What if I picked a different major? What if I took a year off? What if…? As I’m sure you can guess, this isn’t always the most productive line of thinking. It leads to the inevitable thought of: did I make a mistake? Overall, I know I didn’t, and I am extremely happy and grateful to be where I am right now. Life is so much bigger than assignments and work shifts, even though sometimes it’s hard to see past the fog.
In Love Life, we follow Darby over the course of 7 years as she navigates love and life in general. This show primarily revolved around Darby’s love life, both platonic and romantic. The part that interested me most was her growth as a person in both her relationships and her career. Getting to see how her career grew, and how long it took to get somewhere she was happy with, was actually really inspiring. In today’s day we are all very drawn to instant gratification, and we want things to work out immediately. The reality is, good things take time, and this show really emphasized that.
As well, I think this show was really good at showing how important the journey of life is. While Darby ends up finding her person by the end, we see how much joy she has had throughout her life. All I could think about was how this show seems to portray the beauty in the little things. For many early episodes, Darby lives with her friend Sara, and this was a reminder of how grateful I am for my roommates during my first three years of university. As well, we see Darby has career goals, and she continues working towards them no matter what life throws at her.
3 Things I’ll Take With Me
1. Good things take time
Darby didn’t find the love of her life or her dream job immediately. It took her time to work through life and face new experiences to reach these things. With that, Darby also didn’t let her entire life revolve around these things. She made time for her friends and family throughout, which strengthened the relationships she already had, and helped her grow as a person.
With graduation looming, I feel a lot of pressure to find a job and figure out what I want to do in life, but this show reminded me that things don’t happen immediately. The time I have is valuable as I get to enjoy life as it happens, while working towards my goals. I think we forget that we can enjoy the moment, while still dreaming for the future we are building.
2. Enjoy the mundane moments
Darby’s life is quite normal, which is somewhat unusual to see in media set in New York City. This city is seen as the city of possibilities and a place where dreams come true, and while that is amazing, it is also nice to see a character who is living a normal life. While her life may be seen as mundane to some, she still finds joy in the little things happening in her life. In a previous article, I mentioned Jade Bowler’s idea of casual magic. The idea is finding beauty in the mundane parts of life. While I document casual magic every day, this show reminded me that this isn’t a task I simply complete, rather it is a way for me to meaningfully reflect on all the little joys in my life.
3. Always keep believing in yourself
Throughout the show, Darby doubts herself, but that is what makes her human. Despite her doubts, she keeps believing and keeps pushing herself to achieve the life she dreams of. Life will always have its ups and downs, but believing in yourself is the most powerful thing you can do. Only you can change your life, so believing in yourself gives you the power to build whatever you want.
Lately, I have felt extremely burnt out and am wishing for the end of the semester. It has felt really difficult to keep going, but this reminder to believe in myself has pushed me in the best ways. School has always been something I have enjoyed and loved, but lately it has been feeling so incredibly difficult. The reminder to believe in myself has made getting up and working hard every day just the slightest bit easier.
If you’re looking for a fun show to remind you that life has so much to offer, I definitely recommend checking it out on Netflix.
Thank you for reading! I hope you got a recommendation out of this. If you have any recommendations that have changed the way you have looked at life, let me know in the comments down below. Have a good week everyone, talk to you soon!
Hailey