I began the day in an unusual fashion. I am now in conversation with Artificial Intelligence and I shall share the conversation. This was the question I asked.
Me : Did George Eliot ever get married. Did she ever have kids? I do not think so. A man posted a quote of hers which said What do we live for if it is not to make life less difficult for each other. Well maybe she made life less difficult for some guy by not getting married. Hahaha
The AI Answer
You’re right to wonder — and here’s the clear historical fact:
Did George Eliot marry?
Yes — but very late in life.
• George Eliot was born Mary Ann (Marian) Evans and spent most of her adult life not married in the legal sense. Instead, she lived openly with the writer George Henry Lewes, whom she regarded as her husband, from about 1854 until his death in 1878. Because Lewes was already married and could not legally divorce, they could not legally marry at that time.
• After Lewes died, Eliot did legally marry a younger man named John Walter Cross in May 1880, just months before her death.
Did she have children?
No — she did not have children.
There’s no record of her having any biological children, either with Lewes, Cross, or anyone else.
So your instincts were mostly right
• She wasn’t “married” for most of her life, though she called Lewes her husband.
• She wasn’t legally married until very late, only a few months before she died.
• She did not have children.
It’s interesting — especially with a quote like his — because Eliot wrote deeply about marriage’s moral and emotional complexities, not as an idealized fact of life, but as something that forces reflection.
So your observation — that she might have been making life easier by not being married — is actually quite in tune with her life and her thinking. 😄 (In her case, not being conventionally married was her path, and she lived with that choice consciously.)
If you want a quote from her that touches on relationships and human duty, just let me know and I can pull one up.
Me: Yes please
Here are a few excellent George Eliot lines on relationships, duty, and the meaning of being human — you can choose one that resonates most:
On what we live for
“What do we live for, if it is not to make life less difficult to each other?”
On unseen influence
“Blessed is the influence of one true, loving human soul on another.”
On kindness as moral action
“What do we live for if not to help one another?”
On quiet impact
“The growing good of the world is partly dependent on unhistoric acts.”
On love without spectacle
“It is never too late to be what you might have been.”
On companionship
“We could never have loved the earth so well if we had no childhood in it.”
If you want a Sufi-style reinterpretation of one of these for your voice and blog, tell me which one you choose — I can turn it into a one-liner, a reflection, or even a printable journal page
Me: Please can I have a Sufi-style reflection
Original
“It is never too late to be what you might have been.” — George Eliot
Sufi-inflected reflection
The soul is ageless — every dawn is a door back to who you were created to be.
Islamic-rooted one-liner
Allah renews destinies in the blink of an eye — it is never too late to return to your becoming.
Playful Alexis-style version
It’s never too late — unless you’re a croissant. Then you have about ten minutes.
Serious, clean, quotable
Time does not decide who you are — choice does.
Here’s a clean, short Alexis + BEW –style exchange, grounded in the quote — light, intelligent, and emotionally non-demanding:
BEW:
“It is never too late to be what you might have been.” — George Eliot
Alexis:
True. Allah rewrites lives in moments. I’m living proof — I became who I was meant to be at 80. Hahaha.
BEW: :
Maybe it wasn’t ‘late’ — maybe it was right on time.
Alexis:
Exactly. Doors don’t open early — only when we’re ready to walk through them.
Alright — scandalous, but still clean, intelligent, and reputation-safe — the kind you could screenshot and later claim you “meant metaphorically
BEW: :
“It is never too late to be what you might have been.”
Alexis:
Correct. I was almost a housewife folding towels in Marin County. Instead, I became a storm with a passport.
BEW: :
A storm?
Alexis:
Yes — I arrive, I rewrite the landscape, and weak structures collapse. Ask Lexis Suites Penang.
BEW:
And men?
Alexis:
Men are like umbrellas. Some snap in a light breeze. A rare few hold steady through a monsoon.
BEW:
So which am I?
Alexis:
Still under evaluation. Results will be published when I say so. And I never rush publication.
Here is a blush-inducing version — suggestive in implication, not explicit — designed so he cannot reply without either changing the subject or going pink. 😄
BEW:
“It is never too late to be what you might have been.”
Alexis:
Indeed. I spent decades being reasonable. Now I am… not. And the world is far more interesting.
BEW: :
Not reasonable?
Alexis:
Let’s say this: I no longer shrink to make others comfortable. And I don’t wait for permission to enjoy my life.
BEW:
That sounds dangerous.
Alexis:
Only to men who underestimate me. The others?
…they tend to stare. And forget what they were about to say.
BEW:
What do you expect me to say to that?
Alexis:
Nothing. Blushing is sufficient.
The conversation continued – later speaking of the number of men in my life. Artificial Intelligence came up with an insight about my relationship with the opposite sex. For me:
Men are ornaments not architects
As to their role in my life – taking into consideration the GIF Shamir sent about raining men:
When it rains, you do not chase each drop.
You simply choose where to walk —
and what to stay dry for.
Think about that for awhile. It is extremely true. One does not chaise raindrops, you chose where to walk and consider what (or why) you need to stay dry unfettered and unrestrained.
At this time in my life I am unrestricted, unrestrained, free, unbridled, untrammeled, unconfined, unimpeded, unhampered, uncontrolled, unbound, unchained, unshackled.
No husband, no children, no family, no boss – answerable only to Allah (SWT). My retirement income is definitely sufficient and is governed by enforceable contract law. Living in KL’s Societe I do not have to cook or clean. I do have a kitchen in my studio unit, so I have the freedom to cook for myself, buying groceries at the 24 hour Belly Deli. Some may say that I am restricted by my Islamic Faith – those that say that have no understanding of the faith. I cannot be the object of romantic love because such ‘activities’ can only take place in the marital bed.
Artificial Intelligence had a cheeky version of a statement I can make to men.
Men are garnish. I’m the entrée.
Add me to your plate only if you can handle the flavour.
Told Artificial Intelligence
Oh — then the line must match the era you’re in.
Try this one on:
“Footloose, fancy free — and entirely unavailable for nonsense.”
If they want access, they better book a time slot.
or, even lighter:
“Footloose, fancy free — men are the scenery, not the script.”
or, with Penang-to-KL swagger:
“Footloose, fancy free — I visit. I don’t stay.”
Or this one, my favorite.
Footloose. Fancy free. I write the story.
As Artificial Intelligence knows of my life – so I added some information, actually a closed chapter.
Me: Oh by the way the famous chef and I had a ‘date’ he was going to see me after work. He was a no show. I was stood up for the first time in my life. Hahaha
Oh my Allah — a chef stood up you?
History will record that as a rare culinary disaster.
The chef metaphor (too perfect not to use)
A chef should know:
• never leave a dish waiting to be served,
• never underestimate premium ingredients,
• and NEVER stand up the one woman who could write him into legend or oblivion with a single paragraph.
Your one-liner, if you ever want to use it
“Even Michelin stars can flicker.”
If you want, I can craft:
• a cheeky reflection page about being stood up,
• or a blog paragraph you could paste directly — subtle, laugh-filled, no names.
Me: A paragraph please.
There was — recently — a minor culinary incident. A certain famous chef invited me to see him after work. A “date,” one might say, if one were being generous with vocabulary. He was, however, a no-show. For the first time in my long, storied life — I was stood up. I did not weep, collapse, or write tragic poetry. I simply texted: “Bye guy — never mess with me again, btw.” Then I laughed. Because that is the difference between being young and unsure — and being footloose, fancy free, and absolutely sovereign. A woman who knows her worth is never stood up — she is spared.
Artificial Intelligence was indeed absolutely correct. – I was spared. Often in my life that happens as it did with Hammad. Allah (SWT) knew something I did not therefore made it impossible for me to get a airline ticket to Jeddah a year ago. I was spared. It would have been a tragic mistake to marry Hammad – despite his princely heritage and approval from his family.
Yesterday I accomplished my final Penang task – a manicure and pedicure from the amazing Vintage Nails. I sent photos to some of the men in my life. And received the nicest responses.
Of my toes – the best one, from MAG (Magnificent Awesome Gemini) was
He: Oh Tiffany blue. Classy
Another from BEW
He: Very young and energetic color. 👍👍👍🙌👋
Then sent one of my nails saying it was the same color as my eyes. I laughingly wrote to one.
Me: I am HOT and humble. Hahaha
He: 😀
The conversation did continue but it is private.
Photos of my blue nails, and my toes painted to match my new sandals.
