Everyone Deserves A Great Love Story

It’s not a secret by now that I’m utterly and completely in love with the movie “Love, Simon.” So much so that I’ve already seen it twice and plan on seeing it again before it leaves the theaters — thank you MoviePass for that one! But what exactly got me to love this movie so much, apart from the most amazing tagline ever “Everyone Deserves A Great Love Story”?

The short answer is that it made me think about all those times as a teenager when I felt like I didn’t belong, like my life was running at the same time in the foreground (for everyone to see) as well as in the background, inside myself, full of secrets, misunderstandings, afraid of who I was supposed to be or who I was not supposed to be, thinking I was weird, thinking I was alone and that no one else had to deal with the same teenage challenges I had to deal with.

The long answer is…well a bit longer:

• It’s relatable at any age, in any environment, any culture and from any perspective. My story, my upbringing, my culture, my gender, my sexual orientation, my school, my family have nothing in common with Simon’s, yet I can feel his story as being mine, I identify with his train of thought, his beliefs, his struggles, his desire to feel loved, accepted, to hold on to his image even if he knew it was just a front.
• It takes a serious topic and addresses it in a way that’s not only accessible, but also somewhat humorous, making even the most traditional of people take notice.
• It’s funny. Yes it’s heartfelt, it made me cry more than once, but it also make me laugh so hard my jaw was hurting.
• It reminds us over and over again that no matter what we think might be wrong with us or how different we might think we are, we all deserve to be loved, cherished, accepted, and understood.
• It’s a beautiful story about friendship. There will be times when our friends do something to hurt us and there will be times when we do something to hurt our friends, yet we will remain friends as long as we have the courage to not only admit our mistakes, but also make up for them, forgive and move forward.
• It’s also a lesson for parents in how to handle their teenager’s coming out story and most importantly how to not

So what are you waiting for, go out there and see it, but more importantly go out there and live your great love story!