My mind wasn't awake and ready to comment on this morning's excerpt of The Little Prince. Although what I said was true-- that it strikes a chord inside of me, I had the urge to write an entry for today's blog. What strikes me is the fact that The Little Prince was written in such a simple way, but at the same time carries with it some heavy stuff. It's in that naivety of the conversation between Little Prince and the fox that the text spoke to me.
"Just that," said the fox. "To me, you are still nothing more than a little boy who is just like a hundred thousand other little boys. And I have no need of you. And you, on your part, have no need of me. To you, I am nothing more than a fox like a hundred thousand other foxes. But if you tame me, then we shall need each other. To me, you will be unique in all the world. To you, I shall be unique in all the world . . ."
Just as we establish ties or form relationships, that person that we made a relationship with becomes someone different. Someone important to us. You discover more about the other person each day just as the The Little Prince slowly gets closer to the fox to tame him. But like some relationships,they come to an end.
So the little prince tamed the fox. And when the hour of his departure drew near--
"Ah," said the fox, "I shall cry."
"It is your own fault," said the little prince. "I never wished you any sort of harm; but you wanted me to tame you . . ."
"Yes, that is so," said the fox.
"But now you are going to cry!" said the little prince.
"Yes, that is so," said the fox.
"Then it has done you no good at all!"
"It has done me good," said the fox, "because of the color of the wheat fields." And then he added:
"Go and look again at the roses. You will understand now that yours is unique in all the world. Then come back to say goodbye to me, and I will make you a present of a secret."
Letting go is the hardest part. When you have to leave a friend or when someone leaves you or even when you break up. It's a thing we have to face. The fox cries, not out of plain sadness because of it being attached to a person, but maybe of both a sadness (that something good has to end) and at the same time a kind of gratefulness that the Little Prince added more color/meaning to his life.
I think being able to accept the fact that a certain person won't be physically in your life anymore and yet recognize the fact that they have changed you and being grateful for it, takes great effort (especially if it's something like a break up). Even though it was time for the Little Prince to leave, the relationship the fox shared with the Little Prince enabled The Little Prince to recognize the uniqueness of his rose. And maybe for us, we can learn to let go and thank. And possibly, realize the importance of things we've missed.
