Happily Ever After

There are some things that most would agree constitute a "happy ending" to Pi's adventure - he lived, the tiger lived, they learned to co-exist in a small space, and he went on to have a family, hopefully without any more extreme experiences. Although what Pi experienced tested all of his values, strengths, faith and understanding of life in general and probably left scars, he grew in ways that he would not have if he had lived a happy life without the intensity of this adventure. Any situation that throws us into the depths of hell help us find our strenghts and weaknesses. What would be do in the throws of starvation - eat another human being? Eat raw animals? Eat Richard Parker's feces. How much are we afraid of death. Is our faith in something beyond life on earth enough to allow us to not fear death and to let circumstances move us onto whatever lies ahead. OR, is our fear so great that we would do ANYTHING to stay alive. It is in these moments that we truly define our internal self. If we remain the same person that we are under better circumstances, we gain a confidence and self respect that will carry us through any of life's challenges with greater ease. It is through my divorces and the pain and agony of these painful exeriences that I have come to be at peace with life as it comes and have the strength to understand that any challenge that comes my way has a solution and a happy ending if I chose to stand tall.

I was very sad at the end because I too felt a sadness that Richard Parker left without any sign of attachment to the person who had kept him alive all this time. Life is like this though. When I said goodbye for the last time to my husband, he was not wanting to let go, but I knew that this was it and our paths would probably not cross again. I was Richard Parker who just wanted to move onto my future and not look back because it was painful and finished.

There was also such much intensity to the 227 days and then to have it just end left me a little frustrated because I wanted the happy ending with a little bit about what happened to Pi in his induction back into the real world. After thinking about the story, however, I realized that probably this was the only place to end the book. Pi's happy ever story was a whole other story that would not have fit. Ending the story this way also left you hanging some to ponder everything you had just read.