3 suitcases and a funeral

The past few weeks have been hectic. In 10 days, I only slept in my own bed 2 nights, and they weren't consecutive. Twice I came home from a trip only to unpack, do laundry, and pack again to leave the next morning. Three different suitcases in 10 days. I'll fill you in as quickly as I can!

First, two weeks ago my grandmother (my dad's mom) died. She had Parkinson's and dementia for several years and her passing was peaceful. We are grateful she is finally released of her disease and in heaven. I had lots of time to reflect on life, death, family, and the reassurance that comes with knowing what happens to our loved ones when they pass, but I'll have to blog on that later. My sisters, my aunt, and my dad's aunt and uncle came for the funeral and while the event was sad, we shared great stories and had some fun family time in celebration of a beautiful woman.

After the funeral began trip one of three. Danny and I drove to San Francisco to meet up with the FCC high school students for our YWAM service project weekend. We spent the weekend working with YWAM staff to feed and befriend the homeless. Saturday morning we did the "Gulu Walk," a four-mile walk through the City to raise awareness and funds for the young victims of war in Northern Uganda. It was tiring, but so much fun!

Next we went to Carmel Valley for a conference I had to attend for work. Thankfully, they let Danny join me so we were put up in a hotel suite the size of our apartment with a fireplace, a king size bed, and a gorgeous view of the valley. I had to work during the day, but not too hard, and we got to spend the evenings together in a beautiful setting. We ate room service in bed while watching Monday Night Football. It was just about a perfect evening except for the way the Cowboys played. But I'm over it.

When we got home from that trip, I had to repack and get ready to leave for Abilene, Texas. I went with my parents and Eve (our "fourth sister") to visit both my sisters at Abilene Christian University. We had a great weekend, ate a LOT of good beef, and got to see my sister Grace perform at the football game with the ACU marching band. Good food and football; it was a great Texas vacation!

Now that I'm home from my whirlwind trips I'm enjoying some time at home with Danny. Next, he leaves this weekend for a junior high church retreat, and the following weekend we have visitors from Japan and will be doing the tour guide thing! After that we go to New York for Thanksgiving with the Fitelson clan. We'll try to post pictures from all our adventures soon!

47th Favorite Movie - Dead Man Walking

When I was working with the college and young adult group at First Covenant Church, we began a monthly gathering called “Fade to Light” where we watched a spiritually rich film and discussed it afterwards. The first film that we saw was Dead Man Walking.

Susan Sarandon, Sean Penn and Tim Robbins (who directed) all were nominated for their work on this film. The only winner was Susan Sarandon, for playing the real-life nun Sister Helen Prejean. Sean Penn plays a convict on death row named Matthew who gradually warms to her care and counsel. In both life and the film, Sister Helen is one of the only people to think of Matthew as a person and not a “mistake of God” that needs to be executed. When her family and friends question why she is spending so much time with someone who committed such heinous crimes she responds, “Jesus says a person is worth more than their worst act.”

Sister Helen’s style of ministry is contrasted with that of the prison chaplain, who tells her, “you can save him by getting him to receive the sacraments before he dies – this is your job, nothing more, nothing less.” Sister Helen sees much more in her job then simply getting Matthew to perform a ritualistic acceptance of salvation. She hopes Matthew will find true reconciliation with God and the families of his victims, which she believes can only happen through spending time with him.

Dead Man Walking is the rare film that features a positive portrayal of a Christian. In most cases today, the Christian character in a film is judgmental or pious or two-faced or harbors more hate than love. Sister Helen, however, is the walking embodiment of love –
she writes, visits, defends, counsels, and prays for Matthew as well as his family and the families of his victims. She never puts on a “holier than thou attitude” but is genuine and honest with everyone she encounters. She also shows vulnerability in the face of adversity - in one scene, she excuses herself from counseling Matthew to go into the bathroom and plead with God for guidance on what to say next.

In Sister Helen, I found an example of who I want to be as a minister. She cares so deeply and consistently for everyone around her, including the underprivileged children in her neighborhood that she invites over to play board games. I should also point out that her book changed my views on the death penalty. Now, not only do I believe that every person matters to God, but that expensive trials and lengthy back-ups on death row demonstrate that taking the life of another is not something that we are equipped to do.

Next week’s film will be on the lighter side, I promise...

48th Favorite Movie - Platoon

So here we are, two movies in already... and I have received a total of zero comments on my first two posts. What's up with that? I was hoping I'd get some good lively discussion going with this list. Maybe I will slip in a truly awful movie like Battlefield Earth just to see if anyone is paying attention.

My 48th favorite movie is Oliver Stone's Platoon, which won the Oscar for Best Picture in 1986. Said to be based on Stone's own experiences as a soldier in Vietnam, the story of Platoon is told through the eyes and voiceover narration of Chris, a private played by Charlie Sheen. Chris is caught in the middle of a power struggle for the command of his platoon between the compassionate Sgt. Elias and the veangeful Sgt. Barnes (Tom Berenger). The film focuses on the war that goes on within the platoon as well as the war going on around them.

The first of four war movies on my top 50, Platoon is gut-wrenching, but is not without its warmth. The film balances the harshness of war with a sweet camraderie found among the soldiers in the platoon. Some of these soldiers are played by actors who went on to become stars: Kevin Dillon, Forest Whitaker, and Johnny Depp (he is only in a few scenes). To me, Platoon's greatness lies in the moods it creates. After seeing this movie I can almost imagine the horror of trying to sleep through a rainy night in the mud in the middle of a jungle while having to trust one guy to stay awake and keep watch. Or the insanity of witnessing soldiers take their fear and anger out on innocent civilians. Or the pain and regret that comes with losing a close friend to a war that does not seem to make sense. Many war films - and Vietnam war films - have been made since, but Platoon still holds its own twenty years later.

49th Favorite Movie - I Am Sam

I Am Sam makes my list because it is a movie that has the rare ability to make you cry not so much because it is sad but because it is beautiful. I guess it is kind of like a wedding in that way - there may be some elements of sadness present in a wedding that bring about tears but really it is a celebration of goodness and beauty and love and that is why people cry.

So the question that I want to address here is "what makes I Am Sam a film that is not just good, but 'beauitful'?"

I would have to start with the story. Sean Penn plays a single dad with autism who has the intellectual capacity of a seven year old. The movie begins with his daughter, Lucy's, 8th birthday. What happens when a child's intelligence and responsibility exceeds that of her parent? Is it ok if a child needs to remind her parent that she can't play because she has homework to do? What if her parent cannot help her with that homework because it is too difficult for him? Questions like these lead to the State's decision to take Lucy away from Sam, despite his tremendous love for her. I like that while you cannot help but root for Sam to win the case in the film, you still have questions about whether Lucy would be better off with another set of parents that she did not have to take care of so much.

Sean Penn's character is contrasted by Michelle Pfeiffer's, a high-priced lawyer who does not connect easily with her young son. The things that come so naturally for Sam - being able to play with Lucy and do things that make her happy - are a stretch for Michelle's character as a parent. This offers some insight on how we sometimes define "success".

Dakota Fanning delivers one of the best child performances I have ever seen, but Sean Penn's portrayal of Sam is equally amazing. If Dustin Hoffman hadn't already won an Oscar for playing an autistic man in Rain Man, I think Sean would have won for sure.

There are two more factors that I think contribute to this film's beauty. The first is the soundtrack, which consists entirely of Beatles cover songs. This fits in well with the story because Sam is a Beatles fanatic and named his daughter after the song "Lucy in the Sky with Diamonds". It is fun and not at all sacreligious to hear these classics done in a new way by folks like Eddie Vedder ("You've Got To Hide Your Love Away"), Sarah MacLachlan ("Blackbird") and Ben Harper ("Strawberry Fields Forever"). The other element that makes this film so beauitful to me is the colors. From the opening shots of Sam arranging the sugar packets at the Starbucks where he works to the last shot of kids' bright jerseys swirling on a soccer field, the bold colors make you feel like you are watching a painting move. And that, to me, is a beautiful accomplishment.

50th Favorite Movie - 25th Hour

25th Hour, directed by Spike Lee and released in 2002, was one of the first films to refer to the tragedy of 9/11. Spike was already in pre-production when the attack on his beloved city occured, but rather than ignoring it he decided to incorporate the post 9/11 feel into the background of his story.

The story focuses on the last 24 hours of freedom for a drug dealer played by Edward Norton before he is sent to prison for 7 years. I didn't know that happens in real life, but apparently for non-violent crimes someone could receive their sentence and then have some days or weeks to spend with family and friends before checking in to the not-so friendly confines of prison. So while the film isn't necessarily about 9/11, there are glimpses of Ground Zero and snippets of dialogue about it throughout the film. The cast is superb: joining Ed are Phillip Seymour Hoffman, Barry Pepper, Rosario Dawson, Bryan Cox and Anna Paquin. Many of them play characters who love NYC like I love the O-A-K and they are still visibly shattered from being so close to something so terrible. Which I guess parallels the predicament of Ed Norton's character.

The first time I saw 25th Hour was late at night at the Bay Street theater with John L. I remember really liking it, especially the "what if" sequence at the end when Ed Norton's character is riding in the car with his dad. The funny thing is I did not get around to seeing it for a second time until recently, when Bethany and I watched it together. We watched it partly because of the 5 year anniversary of 9/11 and partly because we will be travelling to New York over Thanksgiving. I had forgotten how emotionally powerful the film is. "My boy" Mick LaSalle, movie critic for the SF Chronicle, says it is "still the best film made in the 21st century". I recommend 25th Hour to anyone who likes Ed Norton, anyone who likes good films, or anyone who ever wonders what it would feel like to have one more day of freedom before 7 years of hell.

My 50 Favorite Movies

The past few weeks I have been trying to identify and rank my 50 favorite movies. Now that I have finished, I feel compelled to share this information with you. I have decided to write about one film from my list each week starting with #50 and moving toward #1.

Please note:

*These are MY FAVORITE films and so this list is very subjective. While I would argue that "Citizen Kane" may be one of the 10 best films ever made, it is not one of my favorite films, so it is not on my list. I guess you could say this is a list of films that resonated with me for some reason. Hope that makes sense.

*Many of these films contain material that you might find offensive. If you are interested in seeing one of the films that I write about but aren't sure of the rating or content, check this website: http://www.filmratings.com/ or leave a comment with your question.

*Speaking of comments, this won't be fun unless I hear some of your thoughts as I write about each movie. If you have seen it, tell me what you thought and if it would have made your list. If you haven't seen it, let me know if reading about it has made you want to go see it!