Celeb Reality

I thought it was just a normal day, nothing out of the ordinary. I was in the bathroom, fighting with my straightener, trying to get the hair on both sides of my hair to flip out equally. "Anisa," my husband called out, "Tom proposed to Katie on top of the Eiffel Tower this morning."

I was speechless.

TomKat has now become an officially engaged couple. Katie Holmes has also come out saying she is going to convert to Scientology, the ambiguous religion no one really knows about. All we know is they're very anti-medicine and some part of their doctrine is about aliens. Oh, and they have a Celebrity Centre where those of special stature can go and worship without dealing with the common folk.

As they've rounded the talk show circuits promoting their upcoming films "War of the Worlds" and “Batman Begins,” both have openly discussed their relationship. Both have had arms pumping, fists in the air and screaming and showing big, toothy grins. “I love this woman!” Tom Cruise shouted to a mildly frightened audience on Oprah. Katie smiled a not so coy smile when David Letterman asked if marriage was in the cards.

After their relationship became public in April, the have kept themselves in the media spotlight. Much like the doomed Bennifer, they thrust themselves in the public eye and wanted to make sure everyone in the free world knew their love for one another.

Does it matter that they have a 16-year age difference? I don’t think age really matters that much if it doesn’t bother them. What is a little off-putting is that Katie had a huge crush on Tom when she was growing up. She had a poster of him on her wall and dreamed of marrying him. After the dust settles, will she realize that her fantasy-come-true isn’t some epitome of perfection?

Naysayers point to the quick engagement. Yes, I also think it’s very quick, but I must admit Bert and I had already decided to get married after only 2 months of knowing each other. Kate Hudson and Chris Robinson moved in the same week that they met each other. I don’t think you can put a time limit on love. It’s just different for different people.

It’s not the age or the quickness or even the Scientology—I think marriage is definitely easier if both parties have the same religion. I think the problem is that they live in this place called Hollywood, where reality and fantasy blend together. Everyone is rich and beautiful. Beneath the glossy pictures splashed across every magazine on the newsstand, there are two real people. I’m not convinced they’ve faced reality just yet.

I believe real love is a bit quieter than Tom and Katie’s. The “I love you so much” and “You are the best in the world” etc. are the things people say to each other behind closed doors. Holding hands and smiling are sufficient to show the world how much you care. I have much respect for stars who get married as quietly as the paparazzi will let them. Love is something very precious, and something that if two people really have, they’ll want to keep for themselves.

Certainly there is an excitement when you have found your soulmate. You have a glow about you, a permanent smile on your face. The depths of your love can’t even be truly spoken in worlds. They are felt in the tender moments you share with that person. Those moments shared with the world take away from their meaning. It almost seems as if Tom and Katie have something to prove.

Proving your love and commitment to one another is something that you don’t have to do for the world to see. The proof is between the two people in the relationship, when they can sit together in silence on the couch and realize they’ve never felt closer.