One of my favorite movies is Castaway (2000). It's the story of Chuck, a survivor of a plan FedEx plane crash stranded on a deserted island. He is basically alone in the wilderness with no resources. What makes it an important movie for me is what I see as God's provision. Everything he needs to survive is provided to him, mostly from things that wash up on shore.
At first he seems to fail at every attempt and in despair tries to take his own life, which turns out to be another failure as the rope breaks. Each failure, however, opens up a new solution. Through his own determination he learns how to fish, build shelter, and stay alive. Meanwhile the ocean keeps throwing items onto the beach that prove useful or important. One of the most memorable is a Wilson volleyball, who becomes Chuck's best friend.
One day a giant piece of plastic washes up on the beach. Chuck collects it but has no idea what to do with this huge piece of junk. He stares at it for days. Then one day he has an epiphany. This piece of worthless junk could possible act as a sail that could carry his raft past the barrier reef surrounding the island. With sweat and determination he accepts the offer of this piece of junk and turns it into his salvation.
In 2010 I attended a gathering at the Earlham School of Religion. The topic was "A Spirituality of Caring in the Midst of Suffering." The keynote speaker was Dominic Vachon, M.Div., Ph.D. Dr. Vachon was a practicing psychologist specializing in neurofeedback therapy and currently The John G. Sheedy, M.D., Director of the Ruth M. Hillebrand Center for Compassionate Care in Medicine.
The big take-away for me came in one simple quote, "In the spiritual journey, things fall in your path." Wait, that's the plot of Castaway! As we progress on our journey, God, or the Holy Spirit, or your Higher Power, or the Universe, or however you wish to think of it, keeps dropping things on your path. Or as in Castaway, on your beach.
It may seems worthless, or irrelevant, or even junk at the time, but it's by saying yes to those surprises that we may very well find the thing that saves us. Going back to "Yes, And", the Yes acknowledges that ALL offers are gifts. As Franciscan author and Roman Catholic Priest Richard Rohr says, "everything belongs." In Improv the actor has to be rooted in mindfulness, paying attention to every detail because it's in the listening and observing we find the core of the scene. We say YES to what ever the offer has to give and then we can build on it.
If you're feeling lost, depressed, or just uninspired, the way out is to slow down and take it all in. Look around you and find something, even if it seems small and irrelevant, and begin to explore why this thing fell on your path. It's often the smallest and least significant item that will set us on the right direction and our salvation.
Comments
Post a Comment