Dear Friend, Dear Lady: Distinct Phases You Probably Missed

9/1/2015

There was another treasure in that vault you probably didn't take with you.

"....Dear friend, dear lady....my love....will you marry me?"

They were the words of Jonathan Walker's letter, that, coming from Oliver, sounded like a proposal to Shane that might have been if they made it out alive. Of course, we know they did, and that they were never in any real danger to begin with.

Nonetheless, the pressure cooker of potentially running out of breath in the vault pushed ShOliver's relationship into a new phase---one so subtle, that between the romance of the letters and Shane's breakdown, you probably missed.

What's even more important is that the transition was initiated by Oliver. It's in his words and his actions throughout the episode, that, when tied together, reveal a subconscious, but very obvious, shift in his views and treatment of Shane.

Befriending The Lady Lost In The Crowd-The Friend Phase

One of the brilliant things about Jonathan and Katherine's letters to each other is that they are essentially transformed and recombined reflections of Shane and Oliver themselves.

They met at a coffee cart. By fate, or by accident, Shane and Oliver's world's collided in the most ordinary of ways, placing them on an extraordinary journey. And that's not unlike Jonathan and Katherine. Jonathan had no intention of making his way to Time Square that New Year's Eve, much like Oliver's only reason for being at that coffee cart was because Andrea had stolen his coffeemaker. Yet somehow, from these chance encounters, something extraordinary began to happen over the course of a year.

Oliver remembers.

The moment Oliver described Jonathan as a "romantic who befriended a lady lost in the crowd," I immediately thought back to Oliver deciding to take Shane on in the pilot. She was, in fact, lost---and, as we learn, in more ways than one. Lost in the confusion of a transfer, bureaucracy and the exact meaning of "DLO"--- Oliver rescued her from it, in a sense. From there, Shane and Oliver's friendship began to grow over the course of the film and season, all leading up to their time in the vault.

The Transition

It's not uncommon for the Postables to read letters without meeting their author or sender at first. So it was particularly surprising that though in a similar situation in the vault, Shane and Oliver stood in for Jonathan and Katherine, their words illustrated by Shane and Oliver's memories of time spent together.

Remember how surprised you were when Oliver thought back to helping Shane climb out the window of the retirement home as Shane read Katherine's words about Jonathan catching her "feeling beautiful?" You were surprised because Oliver had rarely, if at all, revealed any feelings towards Shane that trended towards romantic---and for obvious reasons. But as Shane continued to read Katherine's letters, Oliver continued to recall memories of Shane. Eventually their readings of the letters transformed into a montage inextricably woven together in words and in memories.

Reading the letters.

Not surprisingly, as Jonathan and Katherine lamented letting each other go, Shane and Oliver both reflected on the night before the dance showcase and that moment, due to the circumstances, they were forced to let go of. Interestingly, Oliver repeats the line "I let you go." Both instances are part of the letter. But look close enough, and it seems like the second time Oliver is almost questioning himself. This is the process by which the transition I was referring to earlier takes place. Hold onto this thought for a second.

"Ladies First"-And So It Began

Ever wonder why they stop reflecting on memories of each other as they read the final few letters? It's because Shane and Oliver begin to traverse into a relationship phase for which they have no frame of reference because they haven't made it there yet themselves. It is a phase, however, they are each individually willing to entertain, they just don't know it yet. It's this lack of a frame of reference, of knowing how things ends, that cause Shane to spiral, and Oliver to instinctively transition into the roll of comforter, which he excels at, calling her "Shane" for the first time since the pilot.

But it's the quiet moment after their rescue is apparent and they are preparing to leave, that the transition is officially spoken into being. As you'll remember, Oliver's letter to Holly dropped out of his suit jacket. Shane retrieves it, noting Holly's name on the outside of the envelope.

"You forgot this," she whispers. There's a double-meaning embedded in those three simple words. If you're not paying attention, she seems to only be referencing the fact he dropped it. But notice she doesn't say, "You dropped this." The word "forgot" refers to something specific.

What I've neglected to discuss so far, and intentionally so, was the fact that almost immediately after Shane and Oliver found themselves trapped, Oliver began penning that infamous letter to Holly. Throughout the series Holly seems to subconsciously permeate Oliver's thoughts and interactions. In the vault, fully immersed in those letters, Holly doesn't even seem to exist. Notice not once does he reflect on moments or memories of Holly reading those letters. That speaks volumes.

When Shane tells Oliver, "You forgot this," she's really referring to the fact he forgot about Holly during their time in the vault. If only she had known what was going on in his mind throughout the preceding time. It seems to strike a cord with Oliver.

And then he says it:

"Ladies first."

Remember? "...dear friend, dear lady...."

He could have used a myriad of other expressions to usher Shane out of the vault, but he chose, "Ladies first." At that moment, Oliver speaks a new phase of his relationship with Shane into being. And that change gets reaffirmed in multiple ways moving forward, even as soon as the next day!

We'll discuss those reaffirmations tomorrow. Let's be honest, you need to go back and watch "The Treasure Box" a few more times to make sure you totally follow what I've laid out here before you join me again.

Crazy how a few unassuming lines of dialogue can contain so much gravity. Just more proof of the genius that is Martha Williamson!

From Inside "The Treasure Box,"
~C

10 Comments

kathy

9/1/2015 05:56:00 am

Beautiful. Dvr here I come. Lots of food for thought.

Julie

9/1/2015 07:58:38 am

I think the Treasure Box has to be my favorite episode. I've watched it so many times, and I've also thought about all the subtext. I loved how Oliver went from penning a letter to his wife to thinking about Shane. If the connection between he and Holly was real...if he truly wanted her to come back so he could see her dreams through her eyes, then it should have been Holly he was thinking about while reading the romantic letters, not Shane. The most telling part of that series happened during that episode. When your life is flashing before your eyes, it is those who matter most that are there in the images.

I loved your take on "you forgot this". I also noticed that and since seeing A Hope and a Future, every time I see it, I keep thinking that the "this" is the mysterious absent wife, not the letter. I still find it interesting that in a Hope and Future it's that letter he mails, because now that we know the content of the letter, they were the writing of the Oliver we knew BEFORE the Jonathan/Katherine letters were read. The Oliver AFTER the letters were read was a much different man...one who imagined himself with Shane. One who comforted her in the vault. One that let her fall asleep on his shoulder in A Hope and a Future. Thinking of the way Oliver was thinking of Shane during The Treasure Box made me think that Oliver would have considered re-penning that letter to say something like "Dear Holly: I recently had an experience where my life was in danger, and as you know, occurrences such as that have a way of imparting a certain clarity. It has been a year since you chose to leave me at the Pony Express Exhibit at the National Postal Museum for an experience in Paris. You indicated you'd write. You did not, in fact, I know that you've signed a 3-year lease there, so I assume it is Paris that makes you happy. I have always considered the bonds of marriage sacred, and it troubles me that in the year since we've been apart that we've both come to accept the absence of the other. May we please discuss the future? I would very much like to know where I--where we--stand.

Olivia

9/1/2015 11:28:51 am

Another great post filled with new insight. You have reinvigorated me with a sense of both freedom and purpose and, truth be told, that purpose is to have a SSD marathon before tbt airs. I'll be looking out for hidden Easter eggs we haven't seen yet 😁

Carol

9/1/2015 12:25:37 pm

Awhile ago there was a discussion about the possibility that the letter Oliver mailed to Holly in "A Hope and a Future" was not the same one he wrote in the bank fault. It was pointed out that the partial text of the bank vault letter which is visible in that episode is not the same as the one Shane read to Rita in "From Paris with Love". Oliver must have written a different letter to Holly after his emotional experience with Shane in the bank vault.

Chandel link

9/3/2015 07:14:29 am

I am pretty sure you read that post about two letters here on the blog. That was mostly meant to highlight the fact that Eric as an actor might have had a different take on where Oliver was than where the writers chose to write him for the purposes of From Paris With Love. They needed Holly to come back, so the letter had to seem urgent or really touch her heart to cause her to come back. I don't think a potentially confrontational letter would have done that. I agree that Oliver writing the letter is different than the Oliver that sent the letter, but he DID choose to send the letter AFTER his experience with Shane...that says something...something with writing a post on! haha

Diane

9/2/2015 08:43:42 am

Thanks again, Chandel, for a great blog ! I thought the exact thing the first time I saw Treasure Box : Oliver has just written a letter to Holly (we didn't know the contents at that time) and then as they read Jonathan and Katherine's letters his thoughts are only full of Shane - so telling where his heart is.

Helen

1/11/2016 07:37:32 pm

I think Oliver was in simultaneously in love with both Holly (decreasingly) & Shane (increasingly) which was a unexpected for such a gentleman - so he really battled with it. I think he ultimately wants a wife of the same faith as hinted at by his understanding of being 'equally yoked' in ep 6 (2 Cor 6:14). His final dialogue with fellow Christian / Shane's best friend Becky gives hope as long as various conversations with / comments from Shane eg the restaurant scene in FPWL (thanks for the clip, as not seen the movie yet).

Julie

6/15/2016 06:03:47 pm

I always loved that episode. For me, it was like their lives flashing before their eyes with that KE question: why did I let you go? The interesting thing, however, was that for me, it seemed like an interesting juxtaposition revealed later in FPWL. Oliver pens a letter to Holly which we hope is a goodbye, but really is an I am willing to try, but while reading the letters, he is clearly thinking of nothing but Shane.
I often thought about the "you forgot this". It was clearly a bigger "this" than the letter. For me the best part of the episode was the advice he gives to the current Mr. Walker: read them out loud. The unspoken text was "they will change you. They will bring you closer".

Roxanne T

6/16/2016 09:46:09 pm

The Treasure Box is still (as great as the newer stuff is) my favorite episode/story of the SSD universe. I just LOVE it and this blog. Well done!!!

Kim Blake

2/22/2021 02:41:46 am

Thank you for your detailed blogs. I watched the Treasure Box twice tonight and love your insight.

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