The Weight Within A Story

Seeing mythically...

Upon first hearing these words, they sound strange. Or at least they did. When I read a book, watch a movie, or even in past years when I played a great deal of Role Playing Games, my heart really came alive. After years, I was able to put words to it. My heart craves stories. In the same way I crave food when hungry. Great stories. Stories that tell of a time when all was good, and perfect, until a betrayal... or an enemy emerges, threatening the safety and freedom of all... and then a hero, or a fellowship, must take a journey into the darkest areas of myth, to take siege and fiercely contend with the most dangerous of evils. All in hope that what was good might be restored. Why?

In almost every movie I see, or story I read, the things that my heart latches onto are the smaller things that almost seem to take place beneath the pace of the movie. The things that you will almost certainly miss by simply letting the movie play in front of you. They are the sort that you must almost look for. The lessons and desires that come when you engage the movie. I'll give you an example.

This past week, during Movie Night -where we gather the young men for a movie to begin to give them eyes to see mythically- we showed them Master and Commander: The Far Side of the World. It's a really great movie, even from just an entertainment perspective, about an English naval captain and his crew of sailors who sail and battle for freedom during the Napoleonic Wars. The battle scenes, humor, and cinematography are all more than enough to make the two hours well spent. But there is so much more there. If you watch closely, you'll notice that the crew is made up of men of all ages, from young boys, young men, to old seasoned sailors. And there are many scenes where each man, no matter his age, is being trained by a man older than him. The young boys and young sailors are taught and trained by the older sailors, and as they grow in knowledge, they are given tasks that initiate them into their next level of service as sailors. They then begin to teach those younger than them as they continue to be taught by the older men. From the captain on down, this cycle continues down to the youngest on board. It is a timeless, and powerful way of raising boys to become men. They are cared for, taught, and pushed to pull their weight on board as they mature into men. This has such weight to it, and it is so easily missed in the wake of entertainment.

I began to be able to put words to what I was feeling when I started staying present with what rose in my heart when watching these movies. Movies like Braveheart, The Legend of Bagger Vance, Titanic, Cinderella Man -movies that were my favorites for so long, but that I couldn't pinpoint the deepest reasons why- ...they hold so many of the deepest desires of my heart within their chapters. Desires to be fathered, to feel a strong weight as a man, to battle as a man under a good king, to have a purpose and a place in a great story, to love a woman well and to be known, and loved, by her as well. It's all there, waiting to be found. Hidden beneath the surface.

My soul is so nourished by what I find in these stories when I look with the eyes of the heart.