Not Just Another "Girl-Gets-Amnesia" Hollywood Concoction.
Real life for Kim and Krickitt Carpenter.
Although The Vow is being compared to films such as 50 First Dates and Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind, it is worlds apart and deserves to stand on its own for this simple fact: it is true.
One brisk November evening, 1993: Newlywed lovers, Kim and Krickitt Carpenter, packed their brand new Ford Escort with all they'd need for a weekend away and rode off into a starburst sunset sky. In just a few hours, they expected to be laughing with relatives, eating warm biscuits, snuggling under a blanket by the fire, and enjoying their first Thanksgiving together as a married couple. They had no idea that their lives would change forever in a matter of seconds.
CRASH. FLIP. BANG. They'd become the center of a two-truck collision at highway speed, which sent their small car careening through the air and flipping over twice before coming to an upside-down halt. It was a miracle that the wife, Krickitt, survived. She was unconscious at the accident scene, in a coma for weeks, and suffered seizures and severe brain injury.
When she awoke, she could not remember her husband Kim or even being married. Her memories of first meeting him, dating him, the wedding, and even the honeymoon, never returned.
In his book, Carpenter writes, "I looked deep into her eyes, praying for the slightest hint of recognition. But she stared back at me, a stranger...in a way, it was harder to deal with than death". Yet, facing this incredible challenge and struggle, husband Kim Carpenter did not let go of his lifetime buddy. Why not let go?
"I made a vow before God. It didn't matter if she remembered me or not, if it took every penny I had to take care of her, or even whether we ultimately lived together or apart. The simple truth was that I couldn't see myself going through life without Krickitt", Carpenter writes.
Under the advice of a counselor, he began re-dating Krickitt in order to allow her to build new romantic memories and rekindle the love between the two. Needless to say, it worked.
Today, the U.S. divorce rate is estimated to be around 50%. More divorces than ever are filed under the category,"irreconcilable differences". If the Carpenter's could re-ignite their spark after such an extreme tragedy, then can't we re-energize our own relationships and save our marriages?
There is something so special and so right about the Carpenter story.
It is hope, inspiration, love, faith, and commitment. They made a vow ---- and kept it.
