God’s perfect man for me came wrapped in a United States Marine Corps uniform and driving a sun-faded ‘86 red Jeep Cherokee. As for the food…when he asked me out to dinner for the first time, I was thinking Olive Garden. We went to Dairy Queen.
After almost ten years of marriage and the addition of three rambunctious cutie-pie-little-misters, Justin and I still high-five and fist-bump like teenage “bros” anytime one of us demonstrates an act of awesomeness.
I feel like our marriage is the “ever after” portion of fairy tales that end at weddings…the part little girls dream about as the movie credits roll.
Real love…true “I can’t get him out of my mind, he gives me butterflies to this day” love exists.
So why are so many young women settling for argumentative relationships and meaningless sex in exchange for a companionship that ranks a meager one-of-out-ten stars on the friendship scale?
Why are girls so desperate for attention and love that they’ll accept affection from the first guy to catch a whiff of their insecurity and pounce?
Something has to happen. Something has to change. Someone has to say something. And while there are many voices crying out for the younger generation to remain pure, to not settle, and wait for the one God has waiting, I felt the need to add my voice to that mix.
That voice came in the form of The Cinderella Rule: a young woman’s guide to happily ever after, a book that released at the end of April this year. Here’s an excerpt from the book:
Cinderella got it right.
Ariel chased Eric, Belle saved the Beast, and while Princess Aurora and Snow White slept, Prince Charming pursued his lady. He knew what he wanted, and what he wanted was mild, modest, mysterious Cinderella. Albeit unknowingly, she let herself be pursued.
Being pursued is fun.
I remember daydreaming about when I’d meet my future husband. Would he be cute? Tall? Funny? Would it be love-at-first-sight, or was he someone I already knew? The fantasy of meeting him became an obsession. Every guy who crossed my path caused the dreamers in my mind to shout, “This could be him.” “What if he’s the one?”
Was he the guy behind the counter at Subway?
Or a fellow Criminal Justice major?
The pizza delivery guy?
Why didn’t my fantasies include rich men in fancy cars? Why was there usually food involved?
What is the Cinderella Rule?
In a nutshell, let the man chase you. From Cinderella’s example, we see a woman who met the man of her dreams while she was living her life. She delighted him during their waltzes, and by the minuet, Prince Charming was smitten. The best part? When she fled the ball as the clock struck midnight, Cinderella didn’t wait around to give the prince her phone number, address, Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, SnapChat, or Tumblr accounts…or even her name. She didn’t ask him to meet her later.
She just left.
Prince Charming pursued.
The Cinderella Rule shares how to be a woman worth pursuing. From choosing the right outfit (guarding his heart), to putting boundaries in place (guarding your own), this book takes an in-depth look at the dating relationship, even before the dating process actually begins!
From “I like you” to “I do,” The Cinderella Rule uncovers the secrets on becoming the woman that the guy you want, will want. And most importantly, the kind of woman God wants you to become.
Excerpt from The Cinderella Rule: a young woman’s guide to happily ever after, used with permission Regal Publishing.
About Bethany Jett
Along with her writing and speaking career, award-winner Bethany Jett is a Florida State fan, cheerleading coach, wannabe chef, wife, and mother of three adorable little boys. Find her dating book, The Cinderella Rule: a Young Woman’s Guide to Happily Ever After, in bookstores everywhere and on Amazon. You can also visit Bethany at her website.
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