The Artist Formerly Known As Prince Charming
This one’s for every girl out there who’s still waiting for her Prince Charming to show up. Maybe he just got lost and is too stubborn to ask for directions.
Or maybe he doesn’t exist.
But I can tell you who does exist. And believe me, he stands head and shoulders over His Highness.
When we’re young, we are sold the idea of finding our Prince Charming. He has good looks and perfect mannerisms. Oh, and don’t forget that he’s wealthy.
Some of us get older and abandon that idea for The Bad Boy. He’s sexier than the prince and oh-so-mysterious. He’s bad, but only until he meets us; then his goodness emerges. Wah lah, perfect husband material.
He doesn’t exist either.
Who Does Exist
There are single men out there looking for their forever. They’re not perfect, but they may be perfect for you.
A few weeks ago, my friend ranted on social media about her husband playing too many video games. Yesterday, she shared a picture of him lying beside their sick son on the bathroom floor in the middle of the night.
A couple of years ago, a woman I worked with sheepishly admitted to me that her husband was not attractive to her, and she felt no spark. She left him for another man shortly after that. She’s now twice divorced due to her second husband’s infidelity.
A few weeks ago, my husband sent me a text with his ideas for our evening. He said he wanted to “go see snowmen (a local Christmas destination), go to McDonald’s for a McRib, make music together, and listen to music.” Do you think Prince Charming would have made that the plan for a date night? No?
Fact is, I loved it. We didn’t even get to the music part because I asked him if he would read this article. I had only written 95 words at the time, but I wanted his take on it.
Reading it together began a conversation. What started as a serious one about what the goals of a person should be who is looking for a partner, suddenly turned funny. Things always turn funny with my husband. It’s one of the things I enjoy most about him.
We had just finished our fancy dinner (ahem) on the couch facing the fireplace. On the mantle sat our Nativity Set with Baby Jesus, Mary, Joseph, the Three Kings, and the animals.
Then This Happened
Bobby: “What’s with the Three Kings? They were gone for a long time. How are they supposed to have a good relationship with their wives? Where were the Three Queens? Why didn’t they go with their husbands? And what’s with Mr. Baltazar? What kind of a gift is myrrh, anyway? There are a lot of Jesus’ words recorded in the Bible and never once – never once!! – does Jesus mention that He got myrrh for his birthday!”
Lori: “If Mrs. Baltazar had gone to the manger, she would have taken diapers.”
I don’t know if you think this is funny, but in the way that best friends do, we thought it was The Funniest Thing Ever. We were laughing so hard! It’s like that sometimes between best friends – between perfectly imperfect people who enjoy being together.
Prince Charming is really not A Thing. Bad boys are, but I don’t recommend them. However, the man who will love your kids, who will be faithful, and who will make you laugh over bad food – yeah, they’re real. And they’re waiting for you to see them.
You have to keep your eyes peeled. Maybe he or she is someone you already know.
Maybe he’s Michael Grimm, who won “America’s Got Talent” in 2010. OK, probably not, but here he is singing a soulful version of “You Don’t Know Me” about a man who loves a woman, and she doesn’t even know it.
Go forth and see if you can find your (Not) Prince Charming. But wait. While you’re looking, here’s some advice on how to be discerning about it.
14 Comments
Eddie
I’m more like Shrek than Prince Charming! I’m fat, live in the swamp and spend most of my time hanging around with a jackass.
Lori
As I recall, Eddie, being unlike Prince Charming only helped him in the end.
Rhonda Ficca
Always enjoy your writings Lori. They are so open and honest and refreshing! God bless you and Bobby.
Lori
Thank you, Rhonda! I really appreciate you reading.
Sarah Pursell
Love this truth! I remember when I stopped focusing on finding someone and turned my focus to Jesus. I met Matthew shortly after!
Lori
Wise advice.
Jason
Good read!!
Lori
Thank you, Jason.
Kim Smith
Very awesome and true! I’ve definitely met my Prince Charming and he’s perfect to me ❤️
Lori
I’m very happy to hear that, Kim. Thanks for reading!
Katie Martin
Your relationship has always been an inspiration to me!!! I can hear you both laughing at the diaper comment!!
Lori
Yesssss, far more laughing than the joke warranted. Haha!
Megan
I love this title! I have thought for a long time that the Prince Charming model has negatively affected people’s expectations about relationships, especially ones that go on past the honeymoon period. Also – why do princess movies always end with the wedding or first kiss? It’s as if these movies/books/stories/etc are telling us that nothing interesting will happen to us once we’ve committed ourselves to someone. But you have a whole lifetime of story that goes on after that. I want a disney queen movie! I had to throw my prince charming expectations out the window and I’ve struggled with what’s reasonable to expect from just one person, even if that person is my favorite person in the world. Also, I’d never thought about the Three Queens before and how ridiculous incense is as a gift on a practical level. hahahaha. I wonder what diapers looked like back then.
Lori
A disney queen movie! Brilliant! I can’t even begin to explain just how much life goes on after that wedding or first kiss. (Hmm, well maybe I can. Future post idea?) I think couples spend far too much attention on getting everything just right for the wedding day and far too little on the ones thereafter. If we get these days right, believe me, EVERYTHING is 100 TIMES MORE EXCITING! By the way, Bobby made up this post title. His are all the clever ones.