Star Wars, Narnia, Crash and Rent

These days as the weather gets colder and we are asked kindly by Jack Frost to stay indoors I have been watching a lot of movies. Not only have I been watching them, but responding to them in some funny and serious ways. Take for instance Star Wars. Episode 3 was watched by these eyes back when it came to the theaters, but as I watched it on DVD I was struck by a couple of things. One, the way at the end where Yoda tells Obi One (please forgive spelling errors) that he has training for him while in exile. Using the force to communicate with those that have moved on. I feel like that's what I've been doing lately. Looking for wisdom, asking for guidance from the trinity and my mentors past. It makes me giggle, but is very real.
Narnia: AWESOME! As I sat, I wept like I did when I watched the Passion of the Christ. Aslan's sacrifice. Talk about love. Talk about reality. talk about the coolest way to explain what Jesus did to kids. I loved the books when I was younger, but seeing it was just beautiful!
Crash: I live in an area of the country where it seems to be the norm to be prejudice. So, I am a minority. Conservative craziness. Anywho...I watched Crash last night and was taken back by all the issues brought up in this movie. Family dysfunction, drugs, stealing, racial issues abounding, a man's dignity, a wife's belief in her husband, the meaning of friendship, police, communication, fear, love. It still is marinating in my mind and I cannot wait to see what epyphanies come forth. But while this one is just beginning, my mind has has plenty of space and time to sit with RENT.
Let's begin with a story...many years ago, during my holier than thou roller stage of my life, I made a decision about not going to see a musical that a bunch of my friends and I had bought tickets to for our other friends birthday. We spent $75.00 a piece and never saw RENT the musical. Years later, I am watching the preview on TV and my eyes fill with tears. Tears for a story that I can only imagine is going to be so beautiful from the 2 minute glimpse I get from the TV ad. It's awesome to me to watch how God changes our hearts, opens our minds and makes us more like His son.
The change that has occured in my heart is great significance to me. When I moved to Omaha, I met Darrell. Darrell worked at a local icecream store and made the best Mix'ins ever! He was 18 years old and precious. He loved Mariah Carrey, whom I hate, but like in Blue Like Jazz, it's amazing to watch someone love something and not share an affection for it because it's catching. He used to do this dance where he'd put his finger in the air and shake his tooshie like it was going out of style. Anyways, we became fast friends. Darrell was the first gay guy I had met and as always I had many questions about things I didn't know about. Ignorance can be that way sometimes, you judge because you don't know. You hurt because you think people are different than you. You do not know that different is beautiful or that you are more similar than you think. You learn to embrace people for who they are, non-discrimantly. Darrell helped teach me so much. Back when I didn't want to see RENT it was because I was fearful. I was so scared of my own sexuality and the sins I could possibly commit. WOAH IS ME or should I say WOAH WAS I. So, through the years, my heart has had this strong growing compassion for abolishing the ignorance and shame that is put on the homosexual community and the AIDS pandemic. While watching RENT I wept and felt deeper than in a long time. My heart was opened even more. Thank God you are never finished with us!