Waiting for Westley

On Friday, Westley was in town. Westley, as in "The-Princess-Bride-Dread-Pirate-Roberts-Masked-Man-in-Black-As-You-Wish," Cary Elwes. The Embassy Theater was having a special screening of the movie and then he was going to do a little storytelling Q&A time about the making of the movie. 

I got tickets for me, Kevan, and Katie to go. 

Kevan also informed me that often times, the out-of-town celebrities who come to perform at the Embassy stop in at Fortezza Coffee sometime that day, since it is a conveniently short walking distance from the theater. It has been a nearly-lifelong fantasy of mine to get to have a cup of tea with Westley and tell him how much my life has been impacted by The Princess Bride. That is truth, no exaggeration. 

So Friday morning, I got a shower and asked my friends to help me with a cute outfit and up-do, then I packed up my computer and grabbed my wallet and headed down to Fortezza for the day. My friend Ruth went with me, and we chose to sit at the bar, where we could see (and potentially speak to) every customer. We dutifully bought our first cup of coffee and pastry for the day and casually set up our laptops like we had lots of important work to do. 

We talked and people-watched while I did data entry and Ruth sort-of paid attention to some instructional videos. The coffee shop stayed steadily busy, with patrons of all shapes and sizes and walks of life. Every time the door opened, I looked up. I thought about that scene in You've Got Mail, when Kathleen is waiting for her blind date to show up at Cafe Lalo, and Joe Fox taunts her by saying, "I'll take a wild guess that that's not him either." 

While I waited, I listened to coffee orders and learned about all the ingredients in the pastries. I observed how comfortable and kind the baristas were and how they were willing to personalize orders and bring the food to tables, inside and outside. I enjoyed finding out who the "regulars" were, because the baristas knew them by name, knew their preferred choice of drink, knew their kids' and dogs' names, and asked personal follow-up questions about their lives. One guy came in and was giddy to announce to the barista that he had met a girl who "might just be the one," and the barista congratulated him and wished him well. I was quite impressed with the intimate family/community vibe there, and I could understand why it was Kevan's favorite place to be downtown. 

But no Westley. I even tried to assess if his "go-fer" came in to pick up a drink for him, some young energetic guy who would order something worthy of a London-to-New-York celebrity in his late 50s. Alas, if such a person came in, they were sneaky and subtle and slipped right past me without notice. 

Late in the afternoon, my bladder was full, my laptop battery was empty, and I needed to get ready for the evening. As I left, I tried to cheer myself with the thought that maybe we would get to meet after the show, determined not to let this spoil an inconceivable evening. But I still felt the disappointment of Buttercup as she walked to the honeymoon suite after marrying Prince Humperdinck, after believing and hoping that Westley would show up and change everything: "He didn't come."  

Here's what I would like to say to Cary Elwes, if I ever do get to have a cup of tea with him: 

"I've learned that Westley is the personification of true love. Sometimes it feels like it dies, it fails, it is defeated. So it is scary to trust it, to believe and hope in it, because no matter how strong it is, what if it's not strong enough? What if it faces an opposition that it just can't overcome - what if it has its very life sucked away by hate, greed, and fear? Well, that's when you need a miracle to revive it, because death cannot stop true love, only delay it for a while. 

"Westley never dies. And Buttercup only becomes an extraordinary character when she finally gets that, when she realizes failure and death are not a problem, not for true love. She is made lovely simply by knowing that she is loved by Westley. She is made strong and courageous when True Love saved her in the Fire Swamp and on the Cliffs of Insanity.  

"I am still waiting for Westley to come for me. There have been disappointments and delays, and he hasn't shown up when I thought he should. Years ago, I chose to say 'As You Wish' to God, that I will love him and submit to him, no matter what his plan is for me. And I have hope that one of these days True Love (and High Adventure) will be part of that plan, even if it comes in a place, time, or way I didn't expect. So thank you, Cary, for being a part of that story of hope in my life. I know The Princess Bride is special to you, and I wanted you to know how special it is to me, too."

(On a lighter note, I'd also tell him about that time as a teenager when I went to the ER because of an asthma attack. The Princess Bride was on TV and provided a distraction while I got steroids and oxygen and was hooked up to all sorts of monitors. During the "Drop Your Sword" scene, my heart rate skyrocketed, and the nurses were very concerned about me until they realized it was my romantic heart responding to that epic Westley moment.)

The evening was delightful. It was so fun to watch the movie in a crowded theater with people who love the movie as much as I do, who cheered and laughed and quoted lines. Cary Elwes was so full of joy and love, in the ways that he talked about the movie team and us as faithful fans. We never did get to meet him (this time), but I'm hopeful that we will one day.