Score One for Love

Oh boy... he's talking about love.
That ill defined, yet most desired of (perhaps) all things. I've always believed that love is truly peculiar in that in order to have it, you must give it away. It isn't something you can control. That is where people have so much trouble with it. You can't control it. Don't believe anyone that says they can control their feelings.

So what brought this on? Well, I'll tell ya... another movie. I like movies (can you tell?)
Tonight I watched a pleasantly surprising flick... its a bit older (1999), but its a gem, The Other Sister. I don't know why I didn't hear of this when it was out, but its great. What I like about it is its purity. Its a portrayal of honest to goodness innocent love. Sure, we've all seen romantic comedies and those feel-good-for-now love stories. But this story endures.

The basic premise is a young woman, Carla, played my Juliette Lewis, whose protected upbringing and mental illness have denied her some basic experiences and emotions. Through her tenacity, she explores the one that changes her life... love. The movie doesn't specify on the illness. And that is critical to the story... because it allows for the audience to focus on Carla... not on her illness. The filmakers did a great job in avoiding "labels" for people with MI (Mental Illness).

MI, my friends, is something I can talk about. I spent about 10 years working in the mental health field. I've done everything from mopping the floors in a mental hospital to performing psychological/social assessments and providing preliminary diagnoses. I learned so much from my experience there. One of the things I learned, is that society doesn't want to view people with MI as individuals so much as a walking diagnosis. That is what people do... we put things in categories. The world works better for us that way. We have to put things in a framework for our minds to grasp. We all carry around a box that is comfortable for us to carry. Each person has a unique box. And we have to put the world in this box. But it has to fit. So if something doesn't quite fit, we cram it in any way we can. The problem becomes self evident here... there are always flaws in our box designs, but we would rather stuff everything into our existing box rather than redesign it.
This movie avoids that....thankfully!

Giovanni Ribisi and Juliette Lewis did a good job. I don't want this to be a critique of the movie. This is me telling you folks to watch it if you want to laugh and cry and feel good. Carla's mom is trying to protect her daughter from the hazards of the world, but is learning to respect and appreciate her daughter as an individual. The mother worries about all these things that Carla can't do. But one of my favorite parts in the movie is when Carla tells her mom that she may not be able to play tennis or draw or do any number of things that other people can, but she can love. And she can be loved. Therein lies the heart of this tale.

There is a danger to this film, however. It might lead one to believe that love will conquer all. In truth, it will, but not always the way we hope.

In an effort to avoid a lengthy diatribe, I will just plug in this video montage of The Other Sister.
If you get a chance to love...
We should be so lucky :-)

Be well