catching cabs

in an episode of Sex and the City, Carrie Bradshaw compared men and marriage to catching cabs. According to her it didn't matter who the girl was, all that was important was that you would catch the man who had "his light on", so to speak. If a girl were so lucky as to catch a man when his figurative marriage light was on, then married they would be. Whereas a girl could ride around forever with a man whose light was off and no matter where you went or how long it took it was bound to end in disaster.

i always thought this was a lot of baloney until i had this conversation with a friend and her husband. while they did say they were in love NOW, THEN, when they first met he already knew he was ready to settle down and had already made several attempts to get married to several other girls before actually getting married to his wife. it had taken them all of 10 months to meet each other, get into a relationship, get engaged, and get married. another friend took about 7 months from meeting her husband. when i asked a guy friend when and why he decided that he was going to marry his girlfriend (now his wife) all he said was that he felt he was ready and he could see himself married to her (note that he didnt say he couldnt see himself married to anyone else).

this makes me wonder whether these matches are fortuitous or merely coincidental, just a case of being in the right place at the right time. but then again, isnt all of romantic love like that? i get confused sometimes.

but it also makes me wonder, if, after all these years of chasing after cabs I am meant to realize that it is me whose light is turned off. and on another note, it also gives me hope that it can really truly just sweep you off your feet when you're not looking. my cousin received this very random phone call at work from a stranger (who eventually became her husband) who had been urged by her ninang to call. it gives me great joy to ride in the backseat of their car and watch them drive in silence holding hands and telling jokes when they think i am asleep. i am so happy for her. and i am hopeful for me.