Never Gonna

Never say never! Right? Isn't that the positive spin on things? But what happens when you categorically know beyond a shadow of any reasonable doubt that something is never going to be? Would you not acknowledge it?

The idea of forbidding ourselves from accepting the never, admitting to its existence when it connects to something, shouldn't be pushed aside as a bad thing. It's far more pragmatic than to think that something is going to happen when you already know it's not. For example, the new Thomas Crown movie that's being released will never replace the last one with Renee Russo and Pierce Brosnan.

Why? Because Michael B. Jordan is far too intense, not as believable as a smooth, rich, adrenaline junkie who gets his thrills by stealing art. Don't get me wrong, he's a hell of an actor and has done some incredible work. But this movie won't be able to replace the last one for many of us, no matter how good it is.

There are other nevers that we have to face, some far more important than whether a movie remake will compare. I'm betting that, if you're reading this, which it's likely to get read by two or three people if I'm lucky, you're thinking of a never that fits the scenario.

Here are some of mine.

I'm never going to get married again, or for that matter, fall in love again. It sucks because I'm never going to know the feeling of that true connection two people share when it is meant to be forever, until death do you part.

Is it impossible? Yes. When I found I had cancer, I thought I was there. Then, that one ghosted me during the first round of chemo and all the problems I was experiencing, only to tell me a few months into it that she wanted to see other people. So there's that, and I honestly think it would be a dickish move to have someone get connected, then turn around and die in short order.

It's not all that hard, when you grit your teeth and force yourself to face the realities of never. And then, you aren't spending energies on the false hopes of things that will never happen. Sure, it's hard to see the future on many issues, but there are certain things I'm betting people can safely say will never happen.

Back during the pandemic, I found this platform. Been on and off of it, like an addictive chemical, for a lot of years. There has always been that small part of me that wanted to get to 1,000,000 readers, just to prove I could. But it's never going to happen. This platform is a lower-end one, barely shows up on search engines, and people have short attention spans. Few people read anything longer than 2 to 3 minutes.

Sure, I've got a respectable count, but considering the number of never-read stories, which is sadly near ten pages long, it's a tough nut to crack.

Also, I'm never going to win one of the famous vocal challenges. Some people never do, no matter how good their writing or how close to the challenge specifics they might get. It just works that way. It's like the vocal leaderboard; if you don't get a high count, you can't get on it. And that is a popularity contest.

It's easy to accept nevers and stop worrying about them, and get them out in the open and acknowledge them.

Most of this world we live in, I'm never going to see it. That sort of goes with the sacrifices I made many years ago. I was capable of holding the line against something, protecting someone, saving lives, and enjoying the perks of that, but that didn't put me in a position that was enviable. So most of the world, I'll never see.

And I'm never gonna make it out of hell. One of my most long-standing jokes is that I didn't want people to do anything with my body for at least three days after death. It would give me a chance to come back. But I am never gonna get out of hell when I get there.

Never gonna should be a drinking game. When two people match, they take a drink. But since I don't drink, I'm never gonna play it anyway. You're welcome to borrow the idea.

Until then, in the immortal words of Stan Lee, Excelsior!