If you haven't watched the show "Bones", stop what you're doing, and go binge watch it on Netflix. Seriously. Go. Right now!
Just kidding. Read this first. Then go watch it. Fair warning, there will be some spoilers in here.
To sum up the show for you a bit, "Bones" is about Dr. Temperance Brennan, a forensic anthropologist, who identifies human remains for the FBI when there is not enough flesh for the forensic investigators to work with. She is partnered up with former Army Ranger turned Special Agent, Seeley Booth, who is a bit skeptical of her skills at first, but comes to realize, she's the real deal. The cast is chop full of amazing characters and what agent Booth calls Squinterns, because they all squint at things, who make you fall in love with them every single week.
The show aired for 12 seasons, the final season being this past spring, and thinking back on it, while crying my eyes out through the finale, I realized how many lessons this great show has taught me. There has been love, and war, and serial killers and babies, and deaths, but, I came up with my top 5 lessons, and I hope you'll learn something from these too.
1. Don't hide how smart you are.
Dr. Brennan is very vocal about how brilliant she is, and she should be! She is the greatest forensic anthropologist in the world, and she will correct you if you are wrong. These days, so many people, woman in particular, hide in the back and do just the bare minimum to get by, for fear of being ridiculed for being too good, or too smart. STOP! Be who you are and don't let anyone knock you down!
2. Don't let your past define who you are.
Now, three characters have pretty bad backgrounds. Dr. Brennan's parents abandoned her, Booth's dad was an abusive alcoholic, and Lance Sweets, was in and out of foster care throughout his childhood. But, they all still did something with their lives. As I said before, Brennan is the world's greatest forensic anthropologist, and Booth is a Special Agent. Lance, is a psychologist and a profiler for the FBI. The impressive part? He earned his doctorate at the age of 22! They knew they wanted more, they wanted to better their own life, for their future families. Find what you are passionate about and pursue it. Don't let your past, influence your future decisions.
3. You will never have a name as bad as Angela's
We learn in season one that Angela's father is none other than Billy Gibbons from ZZ Top. And along with an over-the-top dad, she apparently has an outrageous name. We don't find out until season 11 what her real name is, when her husband, Jack, finds her passport on her desk. Now, brace yourselves.
Pookie Noodlin.
Yes. You read that right. Bad to the bone, rock guitarist, named his precious daughter, Pookie Noodlin. When she turned 18, she immediately went to the courthouse and changed it to Angela. As any normal person would.
Lesson learned, you could have a worse name.
4. Don't ever give up, no matter how many times life knocks you down.
Dr. Jack Hodgins is the brains that kind of get overlooked. He is an entomologist, a botanist and a mineralogist, as well as the sole heir to the Cantilever Group, the third largest privately owned corporation in the United States. Needless to say, he's got a lot going on. But somehow, can't get the girl. He is madly in love with Angela, and she keeps turning him down, it just doesn't feel right. But, he never gives up. He keeps fighting for her and finding ways to impress her, and eventually, like 4 years later, she finally says yes!
But, it's not just his love life. He keeps fighting on every case, even cases that are a decade old, he keeps searching for the truth. And when he suddenly becomes paralyzed (this is still a tv show, people. Gotta have some drama), he keeps fighting. Does he get down on himself? ABSOLUTEY! Who wouldn't. But, he never stopped trying, he kept pushing forward. And he kept being, the King of the Lab.
5. Sexy men will still fall in love with you.
Since the beginning, we all knew Booth and Brennan HAD to be together, it was just inevitable. There was a chemistry about them that was undeniable, and it had everyone on the edge of their seats every week. The writers did a great job with keeping them apart as long as possible! Even though as a viewer, I was like "Just do it already!", but looking back, they showed how it is in real life. We never know the timing of anything, it's all up in the air, as always. It was confirmed in season 4 that Booth loved Brennan, but she didn't want to accept it. It wasn't until season 5, after one of the interns died, that Brennan couldn't handle all the emotions and crawled into bed with Booth. It was perfect! Odd timing, but, completely believable for these two characters.
Lesson learned, girls, don't think just cause you're smart, sexy men won't find you attractive. Men, don't give up on your girl.
There are SO many more amazing lessons you can learn from "Bones," aside from it just being a fantastic show. The creators did a great job with showing how important friendships are, relationships are, and that family doesn't always have to be blood. Follow your passion, don't let anything stand in your way, and when life knocks you down, keep getting back up.
