There are days that make us ache: days where nature wreaks
havoc with hurricanes and/or earthquakes; days where madmen bring pain and death
with bombs and/or planes; days where loved ones die from illness, injury or
age. These are days that come with living in our current world. Sadly, these
days are unavoidable: nature and madmen will always find ways to wage their
heartless way. We can only make the other days be the best they can be. Be
kind, be loving, be generous. And, on the bad days, seek solace where we
can.
I think film and theater are a great solace. We feel good
watching a movie we love; it’s like an old friend, bringing a sense of
consistency, stability and familiarity—things we need at times of struggle.
Watching actors play characters who laugh, cry and wend their ways through
adventures connects us to the world in a powerful way: we learn from their
mistakes and the ways they differ from us and feel camaraderie and recognition
in what we share with them—even if the characters are animated or non-human. We
sit for a time, safe and at peace, taking in the stories that move us and remind
us that life is full of more things than we can imagine.
So I posit that film and theater be embraced as a blessed
balm for difficult days; that each can draw your mind away from your troubles,
possibly provide solutions and, at the very least, remind you that you are not
alone. They cannot heal the infirmed or rebuild the destroyed, but they can
bring comfort and fill us with a sense of wonder and awe, examples of courage
and kindness…and lessons of heroism and humility. And that’s a good
thing.
What are your comfort films or plays? Leave a comment and
let me know.
