When I want to see Disney's movie Up for the first time, I thought it was going to be a light-hearted film about adventure and a flying house. Little did I, and everyone else in the theater for that matter, know that I would be wiping tears from underneath my 3D glasses within the first ten minutes. What these ten minutes showed me was the most perfect example of love--something not even the most iconic princess movie could exemplify.
Their introduction was fate.
Ellie and Carl met from a chance event and their relationship was fueled by a common interest. Carl stumbled upon Ellie's secret clubhouse, and it just so happened that they were both obsessed with aviation and thus, adventure. However, despite this one similarity, they were both very different.
They pushed each other.
Ellie and Carl were opposites. He was reserved where Ellie was wild. He was quiet where she was loud. He was practical, where she dreamt. They balanced each other in a way that secured their relationship for years and years. From their young years, Ellie pushed Carl to the edge of his comfort zone. From climbing rafters to get a lost balloon, or planning a dream journey, she was his own adventure. They accepted each other and their differences with open arms. Ellie never minded Carl's quiet and he never minded her quirkiness. They embraced each other fully--flaws and all.
They persevered through tough times.
No relationship is without trials, but how a couple reacts to the trials is when true colors are shown. Carl and Ellie went through the discovery of their infertility and the despair that comes with it. They went through periods of financial troubles. Each time their adventure fund was broken into, their dream of travel slipped away. However, they never lost sight of what mattered: each other.
They grew old together.
The most desired aspect of a relationship was illustrated beautifully by Carl and Ellie. They spent every day by each other's side. They never stopped dancing and smiling through the years. They built their dream house and they lived in it until their last moments. They exemplified the phrase "through sickness and health."
Though the end of Ellie and Carl's story is heart-wrenching, I hope my love is as pure as the love shared by Carl and Ellie. This seemingly everyday romance is a role model to us all.
