Letter to Juliet

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Cara Giulietta,

Optimist, idealist, romantic? How can I describe my soul in a word, or even a collection of words and get you to understand me – c’est pas possible. But I touched people like notes drifting dreamily from the strings of a harp, never quite sure if I was for real. A dreamer? Certainly, everything I liked, I dreamt it would happen to me, every man I met, I dreamt of a life between us – little children with rust coloured hair and his greeny brown eyes. My capacity to dream would have delighted millions if it could be harnessed. I was the one who would believe in anything if it was beautiful enough – faeries, elves … God. Who cares whether or not it could be scientifically proven, it captured my imagination, filled me with gut-wrenching emotion and inspired goodness, kindness and most importantly love. My idea of love was that of faery-tales – I was waiting for my prince to come and literally sweep me off my feet. I wanted that love that made me faint with the sheer power of it. Love that cut all my ties to this world – human or material and reattached them to one person, like a shift in gravity. I wanted to no longer be held to the world, but to love itself. People laughed when I told them what I was waiting for – themselves content with just affection. But God promised me love, he said love was stronger than death, that his love for me would hold me even when I couldn’t hold myself, that it would keep me alive when I no longer had that power. I was so happy as I was… Now, I feel like people are shaking me, trying to tell me that I am in fact in one of my own dreams, that I must wake up to life as it is. Is it really just a dream? And if so do I really want to wake up? The question that has plagued philosophers – Nozick’s experience machine – in my naivety I said that we should always face the truth, never plug ourselves in. But if there are no faeries, if there is no God and most importantly if love is, as David Buss described it, just a psychological strategy developed for our reproductive success, do I really want to wake? I feel like I’m on the brink of a change, teetering on the edge, about to fall and I don’t know which way. If this is really just an illusion, I will try so hard to keep my eyes shut. Yet the stark reality is seeping in like a poison – I feel it working already. I am a character wandering, desperately seeking my author to write the next page. How can I live in this other world devoid of angels’ rays? J’ai peur. And so, dear Juliet, I write to you, as many have done before me, to beg that you inspire my belief of true love, a love that I would, as you did, gladly fall on my sword for. Yours is the greatest love story – please help me see that I too will, one day, feel love and be loved.

Yours sincerely,

Sarah Alexandra George

(Winning entry of ‘Dear Juliet’ writing competition 2011)

9 Comments
  • Sarah Alexandra George
    January 9, 2011

    I wrote this letter while on holiday in Verona, swept away by the romantic idea of leaving a letter to Juliet posted on the wall of her house. I didn’t really expect to get a reply, let alone be told that I had won a competition I didn’t know existed! They also asked me to send more of my thoughts and dreams, as they felt that readers across the world ‘would be touched by my words’.
    I am flying to Verona in February to attend the prize giving ceremony which forms part of the ‘Verona in Love’ festival, so more on that later!

  • Antonio Tan
    February 15, 2011

    Congratulations on your win! I just saw it on news here at canada, when they announced the winners on the contest, then I tried finding all you guys letters here on the internet because I love reading poems and stuff, they I found yours! 🙂 You’re amazing and you deserve it 🙂 In fact I borrowed some lines of yours here and put in on my author’s page with your name at this poetry site that I’m writing on, I just like putting some lines that I love from songs, qoutes and everything 🙂 I hope that’s okay, I just was just touched when I first red it at this site not knowing that it was here on your blog and as a part of the whole letter that you sent 🙂

    I’m reading all your stuff here, and once again I’ll say this, YOU are amazing 🙂

    Keep writing!

  • Maria
    March 9, 2011

    I am taking a course on Forms of Love at a liberal arts school in Berlin , and hopefully will be joining LSE’s grad school this september . I read about you there , this letter is so beautiful , simple and yet so deep . Congratulations and you some of the most important questions that I asked while reading Dante , Confessions , Tristan etc .
    Keep up the good works

    • Sarah Alexandra George
      March 9, 2011

      Thanks for the comment 🙂 I haven’t actually studied love, so it’s interesting to know that my philosophy degree has managed to affect all aspects of my thought! I’m sure you will have a wonderful time at LSE, I love it, and the department is really friendly and supportive! All the best!

  • Maria
    March 9, 2011

    you raised *

  • mai
    January 11, 2012

    This is my first time to read all your stuffs here, it just give me the inspiration to look for some websites that i can do writings about my feelings or my love to somebody..its the movie Letter to Juliet, it inspires me to do this. I love those lines in the movie, it made me feel having a butterfly on my stomach..=0) I hope i can get a reply for this message. Thank u..God Bless!

    • Sarah Alexandra George
      January 11, 2012

      Dear Mai,
      You can write to Juliet! Either by email or by letter (the addresses are below) and if you just want somewhere to write about your feelings, maybe start your own blog? WordPress is a very good site! All the best! xx

      CLUB DI GIULIETTA – THE JULIET CLUB
      via Galilei 3 – 37100 Verona
      ITALY

      info@julietclub.com.

  • Ivan
    June 9, 2014

    Amazingly well written. Very captivating and I’m glad I read this. You have great talent for writing and a very expressive and impressive way with words. 🙂

    • Sarah Alexandra George
      June 12, 2014

      Thanks Ivan 🙂 It was a personal moment of reflection that I posted in the letterbox at Juliet’s house in Verona! I didn’t expect anyone to read it, let alone reply and invite me to Verona! Such a surreal experience! Verona is actually one of my favourite places in Italy (in case you haven’t been!)

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