I love the book.  I love the soundtrack.  And I love the movie.  Heaping plates of steaming spaghetti and slices of hot gooey pizza devoured in a romantic outdoor Italian café would erase all the pain and self-doubt in the world for me!  First stop for writer and journalist, Elizabeth Gilbert. 

In the summer hit movie, Eat Pray Love, Elizabeth (brilliantly portrayed by Julia Roberts) packs up her broken heart and baggage, complete with recent messy divorce and aftermath of a complicated rebound relationship, and embarks on an exotic journey to three vastly different countries to find the missing pieces of herself she’s neglected throughout her adult life.

Seated in the theatre, I see women chatting excitedly filing into the rows of seats.  It’s a full house.  Looking around I can’t help but think, “Wow all these women are here for a reason.”  Julia Roberts is wonderful, yes, but I believe their search for meaning goes much deeper than that.  Why are they here?  Can these women identify with Elizabeth’s downward spiral into an unfulfilled world of unhappiness?  Or do they just want to enjoy a real life romantic story?

I read the book and saw the movie because I’ve walked in Liz’s shoes.  I’ve survived the sadness and defeat of divorce.  I’ve jumped from man to man, heartbreak to heartbreak, slowly chipping away at my self worth.  I’ve had my meltdown on the bathroom floor tears flowing, suffocated by the overwhelming feeling of helplessness.  And like Elizabeth, I found my way back to love.

Last week I heard Elizabeth say on the TV show, eTalk, after writing for men’s magazines like GQ, she didn’t think people would like her book, Eat Pray Love, or even read it.  The sold out theatre filled with women would indicate to me that she’s struck an all too familiar chord somewhere deep inside, somewhere women don’t dare go.

Why are you an Eat Pray Love fan?  Share your story with us.

Be Sociable, Share!