About Me

Thursday, January 8, 2009

"The Curious Case of Benjamin Button"

Sentimentality alert! High emotion alert! Don't go see this tremendous, moving, and beautifully made movie unless you are prepared to laugh and cry (emphasis on the latter). 

I went to the movies last night with my wonderful younger brother. [Sidebar: After my mom died in 1996, my dad fairly quickly got remarried to a woman who is significantly younger than him. In marrying Janice (who is lovely), Dad gained two more kids. Melissa is now 21 and Matt is 19. They are both amazing people, and I actually adore both of them! As far as blended families go, ours is pretty loving, peaceful and...well...blended. ;-)]

Anywho, Matt is heading back to college in a day or so, and he and I decided to enjoy a quiet evening of sushi and a movie - just the 2 of us. We go to this movie, not really knowing what to expect, but both of us quite desirous of seeing it. When he asked what I thought it would be about, I said I thought it would be filled with "human emotion." He sort of chuckled. And, boy, was I was right.

How do we enter this world? Naked, helpless, innocent. What if you were born different - not like most people. Were you? What is your life like? What is it like just living life for those who are significantly different, disabled, unusually talented, geniuses, obviously gifted in some way? Those who do not blend in with the rest of the world. Do we really see them, or do we only see their differences? And when we realize what an impact our lives have on others, how do we consistently make the right choices, some that are best for us and some that are best for others? How is it possible to make the choice to fully embed yourself in love, knowing it could be lost to you? Would it break your heart? Would I actually die?

A tumble-jumble of thoughts, questions, images. A night of beautiful pictures, music, an amazing story, but a haunting one. As Matt put it, "That blew my mind."

No comments: