“I love to movie-cry. It’s so cathartic. I love that heartache when something is so moving, you see yourself in the movie, but it’s not your pain. You empathize so much there is a well of emotion.” – Zach Braff
I was watching a video recently about a family who rescued a young crow. Darling touched the hearts of this family after they rescued her, and she adopted them. You can watch the video here.
The reason the story touched me is because of my own experience. I rescued a baby bird, and she has had an incredible impact on me. When I watched the video of the crow playing with this woman and her dog, I was so delighted. I find so much wonder in watching the birds out of my kitchen window and to see a creature so in love with humans is truly beautiful. Over the years I have formed bonds with the birds at my feeder, but nothing is as special as having a sparrow that loves me and lives in my house. It is a special gift.
“Wonder is a gift that makes the mundane extraordinary.”
I recently stumbled across a podcast that I really enjoy called, “Inside of You” with Michael Rosenbaum. I didn’t realize who he was at first. After a few episodes he mentioned Smallville, and I remembered him as Lex Luthor. I don’t remember him as particularly remarkable in that role (probably because I don’t like bad guys) but his podcast is.
Mr. Rosenbaum has a gift for bringing out the vulnerability in his guests. Maybe that is because he is quite vulnerable himself. This doesn’t make him seem weak or feminine or [insert other negative adjectives here]. He is simply real, and with a gift for generosity of spirit, he asks questions of his guests in a way that suggest they really are his friends, and he really does care for them. It doesn’t hurt that he also asks good questions and listens to the answers.
I always liked Zach Braff as an actor, so I listened with interest to his interview with Mr. Rosenbaum. He said many things that resonated with me, but what struck me the most was his humility–something rare in Hollywood. He too has a generosity of spirit for his fellow actors and directors. But there was a moment in the podcast that struck a chord in my own heart. The men were discussing Mr. Braff’s newest movie, “A Good Person,” which Mr. Rosenbaum couldn’t recommend strongly enough. When discussing why he wrote the movie, Mr. Braff said, “I wanted to write something for her (Florence Pugh) because I was so in awe of her.” The way he said it made me believe he was very much in love with her. Unfortunately, the relationship did not last.
It takes a great deal of time, stamina and perseverance to write a story and execute it well. Mr. Braff did that with “A Good Person”, which in itself is a moving portrayal of the aftermath of an accident and how the people involved rebound and evolve. They were discussing how natural Morgan Freeman was for his role when Mr. Rosenbaum asked Mr. Braff the question, “Do you think if you and Florence had broken up before you made the movie it would have been just as easy?”
Mr. Braff said something very authentic. “No. That would have been hard. I don’t recommend directing someone you’ve just broken up with. I think that would be tricky because it’s so emotional. I mean, it’s so hard and stressful period directing a movie in 25 days. It’s the hardest thing I’ve ever done. Then the idea of folding an emotional hurricane on top of that would have been impossible.” And then Mr. Rosenbaum asked Mr. Braff about also losing his father. Mr. Braff related how dear his father was to him and how he influenced his love of theatre which has resulted in a passion for acting, storytelling, and directing. As I watched it, I ached with Mr. Braff. He had been dealt several terrible blows by grief in a very short period of time.
You can see the interview here.
While telling their stories, both Mr. Rosenbaum and Mr. Braff seemed so raw. I found myself forgetting they are popular actors famous for the roles they played in television and movies. They are just people who have experienced sorrow and grief and walked through it with courage. The candor they offer is a gift that helps others continue to walk when the path seems too hard or too steep. They inspire me, in part, because their stories are stories of hope.
The crow video and Mr. Braff’s personal story have something in common. In both stories, something beautiful has died. And I have so many questions.
How do they recover from such loss? How do they get up the next day and move forward? How do they let go of what was and embrace what is? And most importantly, why?
I have been through devastating break-ups and lost beloved pets, but I have yet to lose a parent so I am wondering how I will get through it. Still, I hope I will remember my faith in God who holds the power over life and death, wonder and beauty. I hope I will trust Jesus to comfort me and give me spiritual and physical peace to grieve and let go. And I hope I will fight forward and tell the stories in such a way as to inspire others not to give up.
I am thankful for Mr. Rosenbaum, Mr. Braff and Caolaidhe. They bravely shared their stories, fostered empathy, and reminded me I’m not alone when I grieve. If you are reading this and feeling sad over a painful loss, neither are you.
Darling
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