Proposals!

Guy meets girl. Guy falls for the girl. Girl meanwhile is ignorant and falls for another guy, who in fact is after some other girl. The first guy proposes to the girl, exactly at the same time when the other girl has just rejected the other guy. Now, the first girl is confused- whether to say yes to a man she “only saw as a friend” or to wait for the other man who is heartbroken and in desperate need of her support.

You could easily be mistaken for thinking this is the script of some romantic drama, but as most of you would gladly attest- this, my friends, is exactly how our life unravels.

Love isn’t a myth. It is only elusive!

By design, men are bound to think ahead of time letting their imagination run wild with the best possible scenario, expecting everything to somehow miraculously work out for them. They will keep trying again and again, rejection after rejection, until the girl agrees or until they simply grow tired. On the other hand, women think of themselves as practical and scrutinize each and every decision of theirs beforehand. Thus, they keep rejecting man after man after man, until they grow tired themselves and invariably end up saying yes to men who are the least deserving. (They will not realize this until a few years down the line)

When a man thinks about proposing to a woman, declaring his profound love for her, there arise three possibilities-

• He doesn’t mean it, he is only saying it to achieve his ends. (about sixty per cent)
• He means it, but he doesn’t have the courage to tell her how he really feels. (thirty per cent – of this, only ten per cent are really in love, others only think they are)
• He really means it, and he has the courage to tell it to her. (ten per cent)

Proposal lines that men come up with-

• I know this may seem sudden, but believe me, from the moment I have laid my eyes upon yours, I have only thought about you and I shall continue thinking only about you until eternity.
• I am not flawless, I have fallen for the wrong girls in the past. But, I am convinced I will never fall for a wrong person ever again. For, I have once and for all, fallen for you!
• You have everything I do not. No one can understand me better than you do. No one can take care of me better than you do. No one can love me better than you do. You complete me.

Some of the most common excuses women have to offer, after a man’s proposal-

• You are a dear friend. I just don’t feel that way about you.
• I really like you, but I don’t think this is the right time. I’ve just been through a painful breakup.
• I need time to think.

After rejection, men also have some trademark responses-

• She will never find a better man than me.
• If not being with me makes her happy, so be it. For true love isn’t about boundaries, it’s about flying without restraints.
• She doesn’t deserve me. And, I deserve someone better.
• I know it has something to do with that guy who keeps buzzing around her all the time. I will kill him.

Meanwhile, women ponder over the possibilities-

• He is a great guy – simple, sweet, caring. But, somehow I am not attracted to him.
• Yes, I know. The other guy is a sort of jerk. Doesn’t even pick up my calls. But, my heart beats only for him. For love is not about reasoning, it’s about passion.
• Even if I were to enter into a relationship with either of the two, what guarantee do I have that it will be a happy journey and not a painful one?
• For now, I must weigh my options carefully. When the time is right, I shall decide.

As the story progresses, we experience love, we express affection, we make sacrifices. On the other side of the coin, we spread hate, we suffer anguish, and we evoke betrayal to satiate greed. But eventually, the course of life unfolds just as it is intended, for Destiny is greater than the vision of any man or woman.

My friends, the world is merely a stage for the hopeless romantic, the desperate cynic, the passionate optimist, and the wretched realist. Take your pick!

This article was first published at The Indian Fusion, and then at DTU Times Blog.