How Far Would You Go in the Name of Love?

By: Christina Borger
Posted In: Opinion

How far would you go in the name of love? Would you send the one you admire a pizza with an M&M message on top? Write a message in the sky? Climb to the top of Mount Everest? Or how about drive from Houston, Texas to Orlando, Florida nonstop?

NASA astronaut, Lisa Marie Nowak drove just short of one thousand miles to Orlando, Florida from Houston, Texas in effort to scare-off fellow comrade, Colleen Shipman from pursuing “her man”, Bill Oefelein. She was charged with attempted kidnapping and battery. She was found in possession of a steel mallet, a folding knife, rubber tubing, large plastic bags and about $600 in cash, according to a CNN report. Also found in her car were latex gloves, MapQuest directions from Houston to Orlando, emails between Colleen and Bill, a love letter professing her love to Bill, directions to Colleen’s Florida home, and diapers (CNN).

More puzzling than the contents of her car, is the fact that Lisa Marie Nowak is married and a mother of three children.

With all the evidence laid out before us, the question of her motivation behind this still remains unanswered. What could possibly drive a married woman, a mother of three children to plan a rather malicious attack on a fellow colleague over an alleged relationship with someone other than her husband? According to the police report, both women were suspected to be in a relationship with Bill while on the space shuttle Discovery.

I think that in light of Lisa’s extreme attempts to win the “competition” between her and Colleen, this scenario is a classic representation of how people compete for something they desire, especially when they feel challenged by others striving for the same thing. When girls crush over the cutest guy in school, probably the one that they can never stand a chance to get in reality, but fill their dream worlds with, they compete by trying to enhance themselves cosmetically.

Impressions are meaningful to us when whimsical dreams are at stake. We dress to impress those that might offer something to us that we desire. Case in point: you meet with the executive of the company you have dreamed of working for. You go out and buy a brand-spankin’ new dress suit to wear to the interview. You not only want to walk in feeling good, you want you look good too! We don’t stop at anything when it comes to our desires.

I think that Lisa’s ambition to protect her “claim” over Bill is similar to the human drive to always look for the best for ourselves. As humans, I believe, we do not like to feel limited within our own lives. We naturally strive for more. By striving for that “something greater” it gives us something to live for. We don’t typically wake up each morning thinking, “Boy, I hope today will suck!” I think that if we did that, we would have shorter life spans, no motivation to live, and no pride for ourselves.

Perhaps Lisa Nowak’s actions, although slightly illegal, can be justified in the moral sense. Like all people, she found something else outside of what she already had in her life that made her tick. Fearful that she would lose it to a fellow companion, she went to extremes to protect it. Whether the “it” is Bill Oefelein, your dream job, a much desired pet, or a secret life that you want to live, we all succumb ourselves to this unusual fate to some degree. You can accomplish anything; have the world in the palm of your hand, if you have the ambition to pursue your dreams. My only advice would be to abide the law in the process to avoid what Lisa is currently experiencing. Good luck and Godspeed!