The Gilmore Girls Reunion is finally here, alas! As Malone and I watched the highly anticipated Gilmore Girls: A Year in the Life, I felt a sense of nostalgia. To be back in Stars Hollow and watch the dynamic mother-daughter duo was so exciting. I remember watching the original Gilmore Girls growing up and simply loving it. I own every season on DVD and I watch reruns all the time. This TV show was the first show I think I really ever became addicted to. I wanted to be just like Lorelai and Rory. I began to talk as fast as they did, drink as much coffee as they did, and oh my how I wish I had their metabolism, but I sadly, do not. Their love of doughnuts, fries, and movie marathons was equal to mine and I just loved being entranced within the world of Gilmore Girls each week.

Over the years, I have found many parallels between my family and the Gilmores. In fact, there are many parallels between life in Stars Hollow and life in Kinston. Lorelai and Rory’s relationship is the epitome of mother-daughter relationships. I am very fortunate that my mother and I share a very similar type of relationship. She is my best friend and the one I turn to with everything. Lorelai and Rory are known for their love of coffee and caffeine. Though we may not be willing to shoot IVs of caffeine into our system everyday like Lorelai suggests, my mother and I do partake in WAY too much caffeine. It is needed as soon as we wake up and before we have contact with the outside world. No coffee equals a very (VERY) unhappy Madison and Megan. If you do not believe me, perhaps after reading this snippet of our life, it will show you just how important caffeine (and probably medication) is needed in the Saint-Amand household: One time the whole family decided we were going to participate in Advocare. Advocare means no caffeine, which we knew was going to be hard, but nobody ever expected how badly my mother depended on caffeine. I will not delve too deeply into details, but let’s just say I ducked just in time to miss a frozen hot pocket that was thrown by Megan who was not handling the whole “no caffeine” thing very well. She claims it was “not that hard of a throw”, but folks if I had not ducked- I would surely have been decapitated. We quickly realized she needed to have at least one cup of coffee a day, despite the diet’s strict instructions. I am blessed to have been raised by a fast-talking, coffee-drinking, strong, beautiful, and confident mother who reminds me so much of Lorelai Gilmore.

Through the course of the show, I have realized there are many similarities between the youngest Gilmore and myself. We volunteer for many town events, love our mommies, love cake, and have a soft spot for our grandparents. Don’t you just love and adore Emily and Richard Gilmore? Our love of books is probably our greatest similarity. I have been grounded many times by having my books taken from me…I am a nerd I know. Not only do Rory and I share our love of books and literature, but we have also both hit our fair share of objects on the road while driving. I am most definitely a terrible driver; just ask my father and the insurance guy…they will verify my story. One episode in particular showcases Rory waking up late on the day of a midterm and through her haste to get to class she hits a deer (or a deer hits her) and is late for her test. My junior year the same thing happened to me. I was in a hurry to get to school, granted I only live two minutes away, but I was running way late. I hopped in my car and before the two minutes was up I had managed to hit a one-way sign (or the one-way sign hit me). Like her, I just reversed and kept driving because there was simply no time to assess the damage. My mother has never been more proud, HAHA!

Though I find myself very similar to Rory Gilmore, Malone reminds me so much of Paris Gellar - it is scary. Paris is a slightly frightening, extremely intelligent, determined, ruthless individual, yet under her rude and sarcastic exterior she has a heart of gold and cares so deeply. She may act like she doesn’t care and bottles up all her emotions, but soon the dam breaks and one realizes just how much Paris cares and just how much she worries. Rory and Paris started off hating one another, but over time developed into best friends and roommates. They balanced each other out and realized they could never escape one another no matter how much they tried. Through the reunion, Malone and I would simply look at each other in disbelief amazed at how similar we were to Rory and Paris. Their relationship was certainly unconventional much like our own.

The little town of Stars Hollow, though much smaller than Kinston, reminds me of Kinston in so many ways. For one, everybody knows everybody and with that comes everybody knowing your business; however, I think it’s a good thing. It demonstrates the tight-knit community we live in. Kinston, like Stars Hollow, is unique, charming, and filled with incredible people. I love the fact I can go to the Farmer’s Market on Saturdays and purchase homemade pimento cheese, though I am deeply saddened it never has a Hello Kitty stamp on the bottom like every item made in Stars Hollow. I can then proceed to walk across the street to peruse all of the little downtown shops. One of my favorite aspects of Stars Hollow is Miss Patty’s dance studio and her dancing stars. Throughout the show, the dancers are showcased in ridiculous and glittery outfits and it seems each little girl in Stars Hollow has been through years of Miss Patty’s dance classes. It reminds me so much of Kinston’s love of the arts and the numerous dance studios scattered throughout the town.

The reunion of all reunions could not have been more entertaining. How appropriate was it that it came out on the day after one of the biggest reunion days of the year…Thanksgiving? The family atmosphere the show produced was perfect in timing of Thanksgiving. The show reminded us that no matter how crazy your family can be or how much you fight at the end of the day you are family and nothing can change that. I was so sad to end the reunion and was even more at a loss with how it ended, but I am thankful for the Gilmore Girls. I love that it demonstrates real struggle, real life, real love, and real heartache. As the seasons change, I can finally close this chapter of my life and say goodbye to Gilmore Girls. What an excellent reunion it was.