Karma

I've seen Mean Girls.
I've been to high school.
I know how girls can be.

Nathalie and I attended a wedding recently of a long-lost high school friend of hers. Being that it was back in her hometown, Nathalie wasn't completely surprised to see that many of the girls she went to high school with were also in attendance. During the reception, all of them came up to Nathalie to greet her, gushing about how long it's been since they've last seen each other.

The way they were acting, it seemed like these girls and Nathalie used to be the best of friends. But Nathalie confided in me that these very same girls acting so friendly to her now were quite mean to her in high school, picking on her and excluding her. Just the way high school girls can be. She wasn't sure why they were acting so happy to see her now.

Well, that explains why Nathalie didn't seem all that happy to talk to these girls that were coming up to talk to her. Nobody is ever excited to see a previous tormentor.

But Nathalie is sweet. And forgiving. And everything I've ever wanted a woman to be, so she talked to all these girls and was nice to them. Whereas I, on the other hand, being part evil, would have not behaved as civilized as my wife if I were in her shoes. In fact, I found myself giving these girls the evil eye after Nathalie introduced me to them.

Overhearing their interchanges, I found out that most of them were still living in that small town. Many of them chose not to pursue any further education after graduating high school. Sadly, a good number of them had neglected to invest in their future, made poor choices (in education, career, men), and were now young, single mothers working in dead-end jobs.

And nearly all of them had put on a considerable amount of weight.

I'm not sure what their motivation was for coming over to talk to Nathalie. It definitely wasn't to make amends because I didn't hear a single one apologize for their past catty behavior. Perhaps to see if their lives were better than Nathalie's.

But Nathalie had stayed in school, graduated college with honors, and is now a goal-oriented and successful medical professional, working on getting her Masters degree. She has also kept her figure.

I am a bit biased, but there was no question that Nathalie was the prettiest one there. Prettier than the bridesmaids. Prettier than the bride. And from the limited eavesdropping, I'd say the most successful of them all as well. So I'd say that Nathalie got even. Oh man, did she ever get even.

I could see the jealousy in those girls' eyes as they eyed her figure and listened to Nathalie talk about her accomplishments and her plans for the future. I'm not a vindictive type, but that gave me so much satisfaction I couldn't stop myself from smirking. And it took every ounce of willpower I had not to jump up and down, doing a little she-got-even dance in front of every one of Nathalie's former tormentors. Yeah, let's see you pick on my wife now.

Success truly is the best revenge.