Endings That Last

Endings. Everything has one. Stories. Moments. Relationships. Lives. But what elements separate the endings that leave an impression from those of which leave us thinking, "Uhm, okay...?"

Endings are all around us. Sometimes, they're positive, such as relationships that end to transform into something bigger and better, like marriage. Other times, they're rather unfortunate, such as a lost life or a forgotten memory. Nonetheless, we don't remember every ending to everything we've seen or read or experienced; we remember those that last.

Playing more on endings I've seen or read, here's a list of some of the best endings I recall:

*****WARNING: SPOILER ALERTS AHEAD. READ AT OWN CAUTION.*****

Movies:

1. Inception: Cobb seemingly escapes the dream world and returns to his family in reality, but viewers are left on a thread as the film ends before the spinning top comes to a halt. Although it isn't specified, Cobb's totem is perceived as the spinning top, and viewers are forced to decide on whether or not he actually returned to reality. Leaving the audience with this element of surprise, making them think a little, ends the story with some mystery.
• SPOILER: Cobb actually managed to escape the dream world. His totem isn't the top; it's his wedding band. In reality, it's off; in his dreams, where he and Mal are still together, it's on. It's off at the end of the movie.

2. Titanic: Although she had lost the love of her life, Rose dies an old woman, warm in her bed, just as Jack promised she would before he died in the ocean, many years before, from hypothermia. Moments before she peacefully passed, she dropped the Heart of the Ocean into the sea over the wreck site of the Titanic. This ending leaves the audience at ease, as Rose was finally able to get closure over losing Jack.

3. 50 First Dates: Lucy wakes up and plays a tape Henry made for her, recalling her accident. Instead of ending in the loop she once lived, the tape ends with her and Henry's wedding, and she meets her husband and children on the deck. I liked this particular ending because it was one of those feel-good endings. Henry, formerly known as a promiscuous player, was able to get Lucy, the once confused amnesiac, to remember him and her love for him, as he fell madly and deeply in love with her.

Literature:

1. The Things They Carried: This book, "neither a novel nor a short-story collection," is one of my all-time favorites, and I must admit, the ending was a primary factor as to why. O'Brien ends his compilation of war stories with "The Lives of the Dead." He explains how back in Vietnam, the soldiers kept the dead alive by telling stories about them. And basically, he keeps his childhood love Linda alive by telling stories of her, as well as ruminates over how he's lived his entire life trying to save his childhood life.

• Last line:
• "I'm skimming across the surface of my own history, moving fast, riding the melt beneath the blades, doing loops and spins, and when I take a high leap into the dark and come down thirty years later, I realize it as Tim trying to save Timmy's life with a story."
2. The Great Gatsby: Another, somewhat overplayed, classic, this novel is another all-time favorite. The plot revolves around obsession, partying, narcissism, and accidents, and the ending statement is one of the most quoted lines by many English teachers I know. It captures everything that the preceding pages suggest: there can be no way for this book to end--end in the sense that time or a legacy cannot end. Shit happens, and we all learn to deal.
   
• Last line:
• "So we beat on, boats against the current, borne back ceaselessly into the past."
3. The Perks of Being a Wallflower: I remember reading this story in tenth grade, thinking it was one of the greatest stories ever told. Still a favorite, this novel contained so many quotes I absolutely loved. This coming-of-age novel is about the misadventures and the memories of starting/being in high school. The ending itself is very nostalgic, and it reminds the reader to live in every moment. Because before you know it, it's gone. Just like that.
   
• Last line:
• "And in this moment, I swear, we are infinite."

Short Stories:

1. A Temporary Matter (from Interpreter of Maladies): Shoba and Shukumar, a trying couple, with high hopes of rekindling their flame, face their tragic fate.
• Last line:
• "They wept together, for the things they now knew."
2. The Trespasser: A girl fears becoming the trespasser of her own life.
• Last line:
• "The dream that scares her awake over and over is the dream of entering a stranger's bedroom--only it is her room--and encountering there her own body, waiting."
3. The Most Girl Part of You: After getting intimate with her best friend Big Guy, a girl realizes she's ready to grow up and start living.
• Last line:
• "I want him to know what it clearly seems to me: that if it's true your life flashes past your eyes before you die, then it is also the truth that your life rushes forth when you are ready to start to truly be alive."

In essence, the best endings are the longest-lasting ones. They're the ones we carry with ourselves everywhere we go. They can be nostalgic, reminding us of our former lives, or elusive, leaving us with a sense of mystery--a sense of magic. They are relatable, and they don't add anything out of the blue. They're realistic, ending in situations we could actually picture happening. I'm still debating on where I want my story to go, but I'm thinking about ending the story happily--however, not clichéd. I hope to leave readers feeling good and possibly a little nostalgic.