A Snob with a Knightley Complex

We have all had those times that we have been sitting in fast and testimony meeting and someone starts to cry as they bear their testimony. The voice starts out normal and then the rollercoaster begins. High and low. Wobbly. Sob. So spiritual, right? Wrong. At least not to my younger self. I used to be that young girl that laughed at those people. My parents started to know when I was listening in church when after church, I would mock those poor people. I was a brat. As I grew up I transitioned from brat to snob. This is why when I read Jane Austen’s Emma, I related so well to Emma. She was beautiful, popular, and good at everything. So was I! Unfortunately, it took some challenging friendships and betrayals to help me to see that I am not all that. I am normal. I have faults. I am weak.

Like most women, I loved Mr. Knightly in Emma. It has not been until the last few years as I served a mission and had “adult” struggles that I have truly appreciated his character. Mr. Knightly is most known for his good judgment. He is often found chiding Emma for her attitude towards those she deemed below her notice. Mr. Knightly is kind and mature. I feel that I am becoming more and more like Mr. Knightley and less like Emma as I strive to look outside of myself and love those around me.

I still have a special love for Emma because she had to learn the hard way just as I have had to learn the hard way that I am not above others. I have friends to be my Mr. Knightleys to keep me in line, but I also have myself to be my Mr. Knightley. I love that literature forces us to become the character and feel their emotions. I love escaping into a book and learning through the character’s experiences.

Because of literature, I am a reformed snob with a Knightley Complex.

Image by Bethany Carlyle-Abundo {link to www.mythirtyone.com​/gailabundo} via Renee Cohen Diggs {link to http://www.10cameliaway.etsy.com}