These last few days I have had an appropriate amount of domestic rural adventures, from driving in a thunderstorm to preventing a kitten from ripping my toes to shreds. These things are all the little things that we often overlook as we let our lives consume us. I am that person sometimes, too, but I work hard not to be. I’ve had a few things on my mind, and seeing the film Inception last night keeps pushing thoughts about the little things forward more and more.
First, I’d like to talk about the movie. I’m not going to go into too much depth because I don’t want to spoil it, but it does bring you to appreciate life and reality. The things that are always there and the things that you can depend on. The details. For example, the movie itself- I’m sure a lot of people will be walking out of it thinking about the deeper meanings of it and how it is a reflection on the world and our perception of it, and so on and so forth. I walked out of that movie thinking a few things. One: “Holy crap, where did that thunderstorm come from? Crap. I have to drive in it. And I left my windows down. Craaaaap.” Two: “I don’t think I have a single bad thing to say about that film. From the acting to the special effects to the plot… it was all really well done.” and Three: “What was the theme, anyway? It’s supposed to be a deep thought movie like Momento, right? So there must be a deeper theme….”
For those that are curious, I’ve decided that the theme was “what is reality?” It’s kind of like The Matrix in that way. Now, I’m sure there are others who derived a very different theme about it, and I would love to rationally discuss that theme (or those themes) as well. But from my perception of the film, there were strong themes of “what is reality” and “what is dream” running through it. And, in saying that, I don’t feel like I’m spoiling the film because dreams are a present theme in the commercials alone.
From the question “what is reality” we must ask ourselves… what is real? What makes things believable? For me, that is all the little things in the world. The things that make our experiences our own. We all may walk into a grocery store, but do you avoid walking through aisles packed with people (even if you desperately need something in that aisle) so you can stay out of peoples’ way? Do you walk through the produce section and drool over all the berries and ultimately buy some, even though you know they’re out of season and they’ll be gone before you get home? Do you hang out in the bakery for a few minutes just to smell the bread? I do. Things like that – little sights and smells and hopes and such – make the experience mine.
This week, I am going to try to stop and notice all the small things. To stop and take a deep breath and appreciate the world as I run around.
Another thing that has inspired this thought process is a book I recently started reading. It’s half for school, and half for research, since part of the reason I’m a History Major is to gather information about the world so I can use it in my writing. The book is called Avengers of the New World by Laurent Dubois. It tells the story of the Haitian Revolution and the world that led to it. It’s for my Africans in the Colonial World class, basically a follow-up class to Atlantic History, which I took sophomore year. Anyway. I’m only 9o-pages into the book and there was a section all about culture and religion and the ways the Africans kept their customs alive in Saint-Dominique. What do you do, when you’re lashed often for little to no reason, are not allowed to meet with other slaves… and even the free-coloureds kept having their rights lessened. Heck, the thing that really annoys me is the “Liberty Tax” that white plantation owners had to pay when they freed a slave. When you are in a position that most of the slaves (or any good person, really) where in, having their hands tied by the powerful few-and-far-between…the only thing you can do, once you’ve run out of options is to stop, see what there is for you in the world, and move forward. Find the next path and renew yourself mentally, spiritually, and emotionally by the little things that have been driving you all along.
Today, a friend told me that whenever he hears “On The Dark Side” by John Cafferty and the Beaver Brown Band, he thinks of me, because I’m the only other person he’s ever met whose heard of the band. It was a little thing, but it made me smile and lifted my spirits after six, seven hours of consistent photocopying, binding, and wanting to hit machines with a crowbar. Has there been any little things in the world today that gave you the strength to move forward? What are the things that you rely on daily to keep you grounded in this mad world?
Feathers & Fangs 