Goodnight One Tree Hill

Reblogged from ceciliaheston

Tree Hill is just a place somewhere in the world. Maybe it’s a lot like your world, maybe it’s nothing like it. But if you look closer, you might see someone like you. Someone trying to find their way. Someone trying to find their place. Someone trying to find their self.”

Every good thing must come to an end, right? One Tree Hill comes to its end tomorrow. I haven’t been with this show since the beginning, but I have gone on my own journey with it. This journey has been entertaining, disappointing, uplifting, heartbreaking. It’s the kind of show that says something to me. I’ll have watched an episode, and will still thinking about something that was said on it for days later. Some of their quotes and meanings behind storylines have stayed with me ever since I first saw the episode. One of my favorite quotes in the whole world was said on this show-

“Every song ends, but that’s no reason not to enjoy the music.”

No one is one-dimensional. Everyone has a back story that makes them who they are and who they are becoming. A good example is Dan, who I really hated in season 1. When I first started watching, I had no sympathy for him at all. I didn’t care that Nathan got emancipated or that his wife wanted to leave him and slept with Keith. I honestly did not want him around. When he was about to die in the season 1 finale, I was glad. (That sounds horrible. But still.) Then we got later in the series, and most of the time, I still hated him. I probably didn’t hate him as much as I should’ve for killing Keith, but by the time I started watching, I already knew Keith died, and honestly…I’ve never been that big a Keith fan. I loved him, for what he did for Lucas, and Karen, but I’ve never had any strong feelings about him. (Which is ironic, considering I just said I loved him. But, really, I loved him for what he did for Lucas, because I love Lucas.) But, anyway, I care for Dan. Whether I hate him or I love him, I always care for him now. Because they have made him a sympathetic character who you can love or feel empathy, and then turn around and make him the evil guy again. All in the midst of about 3 minutes. And vice versa.

All the emotions are real. No matter how crazy things get in the town of Tree Hill, the emotions stay real. That’s important to me. Peyton has a psychotic stalker who pretends to be her brother who mysteriously flees after being shoved through a second story window, which may be a little far-fetched, but Peyton’s reactions feel true. She’s terrified. And we can see that. Lucas has an out-of-body experience where Keith (who, by that time is dead) shows him the “light” (I just lol-ed a little at my punniness) and leads Lucas to Keith’s actual killer. Lucas, all the while, remains a believable character who struggles with the decisions he’s made and the confusion he has towards Keith’s killer. That’s what I love. There’s, sometimes unbelievable, experiences that these characters go through that we as viewers have never, probably will never, experience, and yet we can relate because the emotions are true and honest.

I’ve already made a post about some of my favorite moments in OTH here.

The voiceovers and quotes are a big part of the show. Once Lucas left, they became less prominent, but they were still there. It’s amazing because these quotes are generally what ties everyone together. All the people have varying different storylines, but then sometime during the show, there’s usually a montage thing-y with a voiceover that ties it all together. The actors have such powerful voices that add a depth to the quote to make it even more meaningful.

Here are a few of my favorite (emphasis on the “few” part)-

“You can choose to blame your circumstances on fate or bad luck or bad choices. Or, you can fight back. Things aren’t always going to be fair in the real world, that’s just the way it is, but for the most part, you get what you give.”

(Haley James Scott-Season 5, Episode 2)

“-George Bernard Shaw once wrote there are two tragedies in life, one is to lose your hearts desire, the other is to gain it. Clearly Shaw had his heart broken once or twice. -As far as I’m concerned, Shaw was a punk ’cause you know what tragedies happen. What are you gonna do, give up, quit? No. I realize now that when your heart breaks you gotta fight like hell to make sure you are still alive, ’cause you are. And that pain you feel, that’s life. The confusion and fear, it’s there to remind you that somewhere out there is something better and that something is worth fighting for. -Yes, losing your hearts desire is tragic, but gaining your heart’s desire; it’s all you can hope for. This year I wished for love. To immerse myself in someone else and to wake a heart long afraid to feel. My wish was granted and if that is tragic, then give me tragedy. ‘Cause I wouldn’t give it back for the world.”

(Brooke, Nathan, Peyton-Season 2, Episode 22)

“Make a wish, place it in your heart. Anything you want; everything you want. Do you have it? Good. Now believe it can come true. You never know when the next miracle can come from, the next smile, the next wish come true. But if you believe that it’s right around the corner, and open your heart and mind to the possibility of it, to the certainty of it, you just may get the thing you are wishing for. The world is full of magic, you just have to believe it. So make your wish. Do you have it? Good. Now believe in it with all your heart.”

(Peyton, Lucas, Brooke, Nathan, Haley-Season 5, Episode 13)

“Does this darkness have a name? This cruelty, this hatred? How did it find us? Did it steal into our lives or did we seek it out and embrace it?What happened to us? That we now send our children out into the world like we send young men out to war. Hoping for their safe return, but knowing some will be lost along the way. When did we lose our way? Consumed by the shadows, swallowed whole by the darkness. Does this darkness have a name? Is it your name?”

(Lucas Scott-Season 3, Episode 16)

“At this moment there are 6,470,818,671 people in the world. Some are running scared, some are coming home. Some tell lies to make it through the day. Others are just now facing the truth. Some are evil men, at war with good. And some are good, struggling with evil. Six billion people in the world; six billion souls. And, sometimes, all you need is one.”

(Peyton Sawyer-Season 3, Episode 1)

And then here’s one last quote that pretty much sums up the whole story. (At least for the first few seasons. But the main message is still relevant.)

“There was a high school basketball game tonight somewhere in America. A team won and a team lost. That’s not the real story. The real story is about fathers and sons. It’s about life and time and change. Girls and boys went to the game. They dressed and hoped to fit in. Some did. Some didn’t. It’s a story that has history and chapters yet to be written. There was a high school basketball game tonight somewhere in America. Reporters will report. They’ll tell you who the high schorer was and what the keys to the game were. But that’s not the real story. As a matter of fact, that’s not the story at all.”

(Mouth McFadden-Season 5, Episode 9)

Tomorrow’s going to be awful. I bawled at the season 8 finale, because I thought it was going to be the end. (And it was just so perfect.) And, as an added bonus, I won’t be watching it by myself, because I have people coming over tomorrow. Who have not yet discovered the awesome-ness that is One Tree Hill. This show has made me laugh and cry, almost in equal parts. And you’ll see me, writing blog posts about it 5, 10 years from now, because I’ll still love it. (Thank goodness it’s on Netflix so I can experience it over and over and over again.)

What’s your favorite One Tree Hill quote?

What will you miss most about the show?

There is only one Tree Hill. And it is your home.”