R-E-S-P-E-C-T

You do not have to be a good friend of mine to know I love the television show, Scandal. Every Thursday night you can pretty much find me on "The Book" (Facebook) commentating the show from my point of view. But what I now realize is that I am not the only person who is captivated with this show. There are millions of us that have become enthralled in the world of Olivia Pope. But why?

The show in of itself is SCANDALOUS. It has become a #HauteMom guilty pleasure because of the underlined nature of the show. Maybe we have convinced ourselves that, because it is just a TV show, that we are justified for enjoying it. Our brains are stimulated yet not overworked because Shonda Rhimes, the show's creator, allows us to see the humanistic side of adultery and other ungodly situations. But unlike many real life scandals, it brings us great satisfaction knowing that we will have closure because Olivia Pope always makes everything right. Who knows....

But maybe we are compelled to tune in every Thursday because of Olivia, the character. Not only is she physically attractive, but she is every sapiosexual's fantasy. She appears to be the woman every young woman would want to be and the one every man would want to be with. But like many of us viewers, she is incredibly flawed. She is a walking dichotomy. And that, we can relate to.

In fact, Liv's life is parallel to a lot of ours. She has been in love with someone else's man but turned her affections elsewhere in order to do the right thing. Her Gladiators have become her family yet she still has major "mommy and daddy issues". Although she loves fiercely and is deeply loyal, her affections always seem to fall short in terms of reciprocity. The fact she has a law degree but does not practice law probably makes a few of us feel better about not using our own degrees. Get my drift?

Perhaps we are fascinated with Olivia Pope because essentially, we are allowed to live vicariously through her vunerabilities. Her weaknesses are showcased but ours are sometimes masked. We are allowed to wallow with her, something many of us feel we cannot do in real life. For some, the show grants permission to question Liv's moral character without coming across as judgemental. The list can go on.

But unlike real life, one thing is certain. Olivia Pope may get down for a moment. But at the end of each show, she always manages to pull herself together, put on a fantastic outfit, and still come out on top, which is the way many of us long to be in reality.

But for reasons of my own, I just love the show. And as long as Shonda Rhimes is getting Olivia Pope there, I'll be there. Happy Watching! And like Olivia Pope, #hautemomsrock.....