Reflections

 I had originally started to do some reflections earlier this morning, but then decided to start over, so here we are.  I am not sure where this particular discussion is going to go, so just enjoy the ride today. 

I am in the process of reading up on some Catholic resources regarding dream interpretation, and there are woefully few of them.  As a matter of fact, the Christian market in general tends to not have a lot devoted to this topic, as many of the books on it that are out there tend to either be from hyper-Pentecostals or New Agers and occultists, with some secular Jungian psychology thrown in.  I have two books in particular I wanted to look at once I have them, as well as some notes from a Catholic priest, Fr. Chris Alar, that did some teaching on the topic too, so once I do I want to tackle the topic myself.  I tend to believe in the significance of dreams, as they often tell us things about our own inner thoughts that we either don't face up to or maybe don't fully understand.  Not every dream is a message from God either obviously, as I am of the belief that many dreams are just our way of coping with those times in life when we have stress and anxiety.  However, that does not rule out the possibility of spiritual significance in some dreams either, and I have had some dreams that told me some things too.  I won't get into all that here, but within the next week or two I will have a more detailed discussion on the topic. 

As I write this, I am in a bit of a state of flux myself.  Have you ever been on that verge of something to happen, but the wait is excruciating for it?  That is kind of where I am right now, and it is about to get on my last nerve in all honesty.  I won't go into details of the specifics on this, but I am waiting on some news for some things, and if you don't mind doing so, for those reading this just keep me in your prayers.  Thanks for that, and in time I may share some retrospection on it all, but for now I am not sure of a few details myself so I can't really say much.  

I wanted to talk about a movie I watched last night.  It is an old movie, and it is one many are familiar with probably as it was released in 1996 and titled Matilda.  The movie had an all-star cast, including Rhea Perlman, Danny DeVito, the young actress Mara Wilson, and even Pee Wee Herman (Paul Reubens) makes an appearance as a cop.  The plot of the movie is this young girl, Matilda, who is born into a family of idiots - the father, Harry, is a crooked car salesman, while the mother, Zinnia, is a self-absorbed bingo-obsessed bored housewife.  The couple could care less about Matilda, as she is essentially just an unwanted addition to the home, and she is often neglected and diminished by her parents (who don't even know her actual age).  In her solitude though, little Matilda develops her mental abilities quickly, with a real hunger for reading in particular, and for a young girl her age she shows a remarkable self-sufficiency.  Due to the selfish neglect of her parents, Matilda doesn't even get to go to school yet but she teaches herself things and advances even without the benefit of formal education.  Then one day, her dad sells a car to this nasty big woman named Trunchbull, who happens to be the principal at an academy, and for a deal on the car Harry the dad agrees to enroll Matilda in the school. Matilda at first is overjoyed, but that fades quickly when the extent of tyranny Trunchbull rules the school is on full display.  However, the bright spot in this story is a pretty and very sweet young teacher, Miss Honey, who immediately takes an interest in Matilda and helps her to focus the intelligence she has, and in the process they grow close.  However, a sub-plot to this is that Trunchbull is actually Miss Honey's step-aunt, and the tragic story of that was that her father died under mysterious circumstances and "Aunt Trunchbull" gained custody of the young girl but was abusive to her.  As the movie progresses, Matilda's parents become targets of an investigation (her ditzy mom thinks the FBI agents staking out their house are speed boat salesmen, although Matilda knows better) and justice is eventually meted out to Trunchbull for her sins and she is forced to leave the school.  Miss Honey then becomes principal, then adopts Matilda (her parents were more than happy to do that), and the school turns around almost overnight.  The movie itself is really cute, and I have seen it several times over the years, but there are some lessons in it for us that I think carry significant value, so our discussion will pivot to that today. 

Matilda is a picture of many of us - we face adversities where those who should be the closest to us are often the ones who are quick to isolate and dismiss us.  However, rather than being a punishment, the isolation caused by adversity can be an important teacher for us, as it helps us to really lean into our own unique strengths.  The part I omitted was that Matilda's expanding mind also allowed her to have some very unique powers, and that played a role in bringing justice both to Trunchbull and her deadbeat parents.  Obviously, we are not able to make things move at the point of a finger like Matilda did as a special power, but we can cultivate other talents even when people don't recognize them.  When I watch that movie as a matter of fact, I also see a lot of myself in it, as I was a kid who achieved much despite adversities in life.  Likewise, we all encounter the Trunchbulls - those people who threaten us because they either don't understand us or they have an agenda and we pose a threat to them.  In more real-life terms, I call the Trunchbulls I face "gate-keepers," as they are always creating obstacles to impede or prevent progress.  The key to overcoming those is not to fight them, but to strategically know how to target their weaknesses, and to use our own strengths to outshine them.  The Miss Honeys are also in our lives too, and those are the people who do believe in us and are our encouragers and cheerleaders.  They are an integral part in the role they play to helping us be our better selves.  It is also possible that in some aspects of our lives, we are the Matildas, but in other aspects we are the Miss Honeys.  And, to be completely honest, some of us have the potential to be Trunchbulls too.   A few think they are being a Miss Honey when in reality they are actually being Trunchbulls - we see that now in the current Vatican leadership, and it is a factor in some decisions I am in the process of making too.  The best way though to get rid of a "gate-keeper" is to dismantle the "gate" from which they draw their power, and smart warfare mandates that we do this as the best course of action, as often the "gate-keeper" will destroy us if we take them on head-on.   Bottom line, a young Matilda has the potential of growing into either a Miss Honey or a Trunchbull, so it is up to the formation of that young Matilda to choose the right way.  We all start out as Matildas in some aspect for sure, but what we blossom into depends on how we overcome adversities and other things.  That is a major lesson I draw from this.

I like watching movies to get ideas, although I am also just entertained as a good movie on occasion is a nice diversion from the rigors of life.  However, on occasion that idea finds you, and when it jumps out at you, it is important you grab it.  Culture is designed - when it is appreciated properly - to create inspiration in others.  Literature, film, music...they can all stimulate ideas and inspiration.  And, a whole lesson can come from watching a movie like Matilda, even if it isn't the original intended message of the movie itself.  In the future I will probably add more insights like this as well.

Thank you for allowing me to share, and will see you next time.