For any of you who don't know who Elle Woods is, or what her transformation was, here's the gist:
"Legally Blonde" is a ground-breaking movie set in the early 2000s about a sorority girl named Elle Woods (played by the beautiful pixie queen Reese Witherspoon) who gets dumped by her boyfriend because he is going to Harvard to become a lawyer, and he doesn't think she is good enough to take their relationship to the next level. Elle decides to also go to law school to show her ex that she is totally good enough, but instead she ends up finding herself, becoming a really successful law student, realizing her ex is a total bozo and falling in love with a way nicer and more successful lawyer man. The end: everyone lives happily ever after!
Her transformation from a teary-eyed girl trying to impress her ex to a hot-shot, Ivy league lawyer is iconic. Every person should have a chance to experience their own Elle Woods-like transformation. And this year I had mine.
I'll set the scene for you: it's the first month of my sophomore year, and I am laying on my sorority sister's apartment floor with puffy eyes and a half-eaten plate of chicken nuggets my big bought me to cheer me up. I just cried and dumped my unfiltered emotions of my unrequited love to a group of 50 plus people before my cousin had to lend me her sunglasses and Uber my overly-emotional self to the safety of my big's arms. I was way past cry-in-bed-and-throw-chocolates-at-the-TV-scene bad; I had hit College Girl Rock Bottom.
Then we fast-forward to now: I am social chair of my sorority, I have an awesome job (and I'm pretty good at it), I have the best group of friends and I can hold a plank for a minute-and-a-half. I'm not a Harvard law student, and I did not win the murder trial of the year, but I think I'm doing pretty good for a twenty-year-old Communications undergrad.
My transformation was nowhere near as glamorous as "Legally Blonde." It included a lot more meltdowns, whether in public or private. I spent a good amount of hours laying on my bedroom floor, giving myself pep talks to do my homework or go to the gym or to even socialize instead of just laying on my floor listening to my "Sad, Emo Songs" playlist. A lot of unfortunate things did happen, and I personally made a lot of mistakes, but I made it. I am independent, I am successful, I am capable and I am happy.
(I haven't snagged myself a successful lawyer man yet, but I'm only twenty so cut me some slack.)
"Legally Blonde" may have just been a (fabulous) movie, but it doesn't mean we can't strive to live up to its example. My Elle Woods transformation was one of the hardest and best things that have ever happened, and I would ten-out-of-ten recommend everyone go through their own personal "Legally Blonde" experience.
