Nothing ventured, nothing gained

"Terrible ideas are like playground scapegoats. Given enough encouragement, they grow up to be geniuses. Take one of your terrible ideas and work on it."– Frances Mayes, Under the Tuscan Sun

Under the Tuscan Sun is based on the book written by Frances Mayes. It’s about a San Francisco writer incidentally named Frances Mayes.

Her husband (also a writer) dumps Frances for a younger girl. Trying to help her pick up the pieces, her well-meaning friends offer her a chance to go on a 10-day tour in Tuscany. Feeling suffocated and needing to get out from her "camp divorce" apartment, she packs her bags and heads for Italy.

Tuscany is a profusion of natural delights. Its hills boast of a plethora of sunflowers dancing like ballerinas in tutus on one side; scarlet spring poppy fields against the pale blue sky on another side. The colors all so vivid, so intense they hurt the eyes. The beguiling Tuscany mirrors landscapes from fairy tales like Snow White. No wonder Frances falls for its breathtaking beauty.

What is supposed to be a harmless and fun-filled 10-day Tuscan tour turns out to be a life-altering experience for our protagonist. On impulse, she buys Bramasole, a run-down villa in Tuscany. Initially, she has second thoughts about her stupid decision of buying a house too big for a life she doesn’t have (buyer’s remorse she says), but she gradually realizes that her sudden detour offers pleasant surprises.

I love Under the Tuscan Sun because it’s a story of hope. It’s a story of making choices, of learning to pick up the pieces. It depicts that life is no bed of roses; it is never a straight path. It tells that life bestows a lot of crossroads and unexpected bends and is never linear. Yet, it encourages one to celebrate life, to live life amidst the problems, doubts and anxieties. Never give up. Fight to celebrate life.

Along the way, there will be major unexpected setbacks yet one ought to move on, make a choice, and work on his or her choices. Like Frances in the movie, she learns to move on and get herself a life she truly deserves after her divorce. One of the character’s advice to Frances is "to live life spherically, in many directions; never lose your childish enthusiasm and things will come your way."

To live spherically, to me, means never to be afraid to take the road less traveled. One does not necessarily take the path frequently traversed. I guess buying a house in a foreign country must have been terrifying for Frances. But, instead of banging her head on the wall for that seemingly terrible idea/mistake, she embraces it and works on it. In the end, she discovers that "in life, unthinkably good things happen, even late in the game."

Braving the unknown is frightening yet often most rewarding.

Sometimes, playing safe is not really safe anymore. Sometimes, one has to grit his or her teeth, throw in the dice, and take risks. Taking great risks reaps great payoffs.

Writing a movie review is one of my terrible ideas.

I never thought I would ever attempt to write reviews. I am an accountant by profession. I am always swamped with work: preparing financial reports, variance analyses and budgets; reviewing journals and checking vouchers, sales reports and cash position, meeting with and fawning on the bosses, etc. Numbers and calculators –not words and dictionaries– are my constant companions.

At the outset, I had ambivalent feelings about writing this piece. My inner voice told me I should do it. What if I’m not good enough? What if my style sucks? What if the readers find it boring?

I have never harbored the delusion that I could be a good writer like my idols J.K. Rowling and Carl Hiaasen. Still, I had to give it a try. I took a leaf out of Frances’ book, worked on my terrible idea and finished this.

I hope this article will be my own version of a serendipitous detour.