No Shame or Sadness

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Paris

“I love my past, I love my present.  I am not ashamed of what I have had, and I am not sad because I no longer have it.”

Sidonie Gabrielle Colette

Sidonie Gabrielle Colette’s life was marked by three marriages and numerous affairs. Described as vivid, sensual and highly imagistic, her writings held autobiographical nuances.  It seems that Colette intentionally blurred the margins between fiction and reality.

In 1920, she married Henri Gauthier-Villars, a music writer and critic of dubious talent. A philanderer lacking moral fibre,   he forced Colette to produce novels that would bankroll his personal needs.  She became a success with her “Claudine” novels, which she wrote as Colette Willy from 1900 until her marriage breakdown in 1906.  After her divorce, Colette did not look back, but went headlong into a career as a music hall mime.  For six years, she traveled the circuit and enjoyed modest success. Through it all, she continued with her writing, growing ever more confident and prolific.  In 1909, at 36 years of age, she produced and starred in her first play, En Camarades.

Sidonie Gabrielle Colette embraced all of what life offered – hope, sadness, joy, betrayal, and disappointment – and transformed these moments into an art form.  She loved her past and present, but was able to move on towards her destiny.

22 thoughts on “No Shame or Sadness”

  2. It takes great spirit to embrace our past and our mistakes. One of my favourite songs is Non, je ne regrette rien.

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    • Thanks for reminding me of this remarkable song!!!

      No! Absolutely nothing…
      No! I regret nothing
      Neither the good that I’ve done nor the bad
      All this is much the same to me!

      No! Absolutely nothing…
      No! I regret nothing…
      It is paid, swept away, forgotten
      I don’t care about the past!

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  4. Thank you, dear Clanmother, for making us remember Colette. She really was a great woman with quite an influence on the the intellectual scene in her time. Quite some people wrote about her in Europe lately. She has not been forgotten.
    Thanks for your inspiration.
    Greetings from Merry Ol` England
    Klausbernd

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    • Dear Klausbernd, thank for your encouragement.There are so many remarkable men and women who have given so much to our generation. We need to remember. Art, literature, music nurture our collective soul. That is why I love to stop by your “place” and participate in your great discussions.

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  6. Sidonie Gabrielle Colette — what an inspiration … and an amazing woman born within an age that would have tried to box and contain her enthusiasm and creativity. In our age, as women in our society we have much more freedom and acceptance but yet don’t take the risk that she took in her life. Can you imagine what our communities would be like if we approached life as she did? Hummmm….. food for thought!

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    • If anyone has embraced the joy of creativity and risk, it is you! You continue to amaze me with your elegance and flair….

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      • Ahhhh … but then, I have surrounded myself with wonderful people who infuse me with energy and inspiration … who challenge me to greater depths … and, YOU, are one of those very special people! What would I do without your advice and encouragement? I don’t want to find out!!

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  7. Then I won’t be ashamed or embarrassed to say I have never heard of her. 🙂

    I will only be ashamed if I say…..there is nothing more I need to learn or know. 😦

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