Ever since I was a little girl, I so desperately wanted to be a part of the magical Manhattan as described by curly-haired columnist Carrie Bradshaw in HBO’s 90’s pop-culture masterpiece, “Sex and the City.” I remember being a young pre-teen sitting quietly in the doorway of my mother’s bedroom staring at the screen as she watched the latest episode, hoping I would not get caught; my young mind had to stay innocent and untarnished as long as possible. I watched four fabulous women handle love and life, all while looking incredibly chic, in the backdrop of the greatest city in the world, New York. Although it has been 15 years since the world said goodbye to the fabulous four females of “Sex and the City,” the show’s legacy and the characters that built it still continue to influence and inspire me today. Each character’s lessons created the bible on how to navigate life as a young woman.
Carrie: Be Honest.
Aside from creating an eclectic and girly style I model my own after, Carrie taught me that being honest and jumping into uncomfortable and often controversial topics, is key to sanity. Whether it is confessing you are not ready to be married to your good-natured and wholesome furniture designer boyfriend, or telling your fiance about the fears you have moving in with him, Carrie has been the prime example of vocalizing how you feel to eliminate ingenuity and awkwardness. However, her honesty comes only after she spills all the details to her girls over brunch and mimosas first.
Miranda: Men aren’t Everything.
While the other women, more specifically Charlotte and Carrie, pine over this idealized version of love, Miranda is more practical when it comes to her relationships. Her failure to consider love as her top priority allowed her to focus on building a successful career in the fast-paced and demanding legal field. As the news of Steve’s indiscretions came to light, Miranda was not completely torn apart from it and instead, was able to handle it maturely. Her lackadaisical approach to finding ‘the one’ is the perfect contrast to the show’s strong emphasis on love, and lets viewers know that relationships are not the only means of happiness.
Samantha: Love Yourself.
Samantha Jones is the exemplary figure of self-confidence; she is a woman who loves herself and lets the world know exactly that. From telling one of her beaus “I love me too” after he confesses his love for her, to throwing a “I don’t have a baby” shower to celebrate her fabulousness, Samantha has taught me that loving yourself is far from a crime- it is a must.
Charlotte: It Will Work Out.
Last is the character I most identify with: naive and innocent Charlotte York. A hopeless romantic to say the least, Charlotte spent the majority of the series chasing a love narrative she created in her mind, which included a gorgeous and devoted husband and prim and proper children. However, we saw her struggles to find her fairy-tale unfold before us, as she surveyed New York’s finest bachelors and still failed to find the one. It was not until later on that she met her perfect match, Harry, a man who was the opposite of everything she thought she wanted. Loud and not the most attractive, Harry charmed Charlotte and the two’s love story is perhaps my favorite of the entire show. Charlotte’s persistence to her dream only led her to horrible heartbreak. Charlotte taught me that once you stop creating idealized scenarios of how things are supposed to be, everything that is meant to happen will happen.
From Carrie’s brutal honesty to Samantha’s self-love, these women all provided me with life lessons that I carry with me always. As I am quickly approaching my early 20s, I look forward to utilizing more of what I learned from these woman, which will one day hopefully help me write my own love story with New York.