'We are myserious creatures, aren't we?'

Today I randomly went to the movies with some friends. It was the first time in a long while that I had absolutely no idea what I was going to see...and it was a very refreshing feeling.

We went to see 'Evening' which is a story about this woman, Ann (Vanessa Redgrave), looking back on her life and the moments that defined her life. She is dying and determined to tell her daughters about those moments. It was a really powerful film with a cast full of huge names - Glenn Close, Natasha Richardson (Constance), Meryl Streep (Lila), Claire Danes (young Ann)...and my absolute favorite, Toni Collette (Nina). (By the way, if you're looking to go see this, forget about what reviewers are saying - I just don't think they understood it.)

One of the great moments in the film occurs near the end when Lila is talking to Nina about her mother, Ann. She says, 'We can't know everything she did....we are mysterious creatures, aren't we?' It really just makes me think about all the stories I've heard about my grandparents, parents, and other relatives...and about all the ones I've never heard that make them so much what they are today.

The other thing I loved in this movie is a discussion that Ann has with her daughter. They talk about being afraid to make decisions because you are always afraid that you'll make the wrong one...that you'll make a mistake. Ann tells her daughter that there are no mistakes. I forget the exact wording of her explanation, but basically she says that everything in life has its good and bad sides - it's sort of a 'you're where you're meant to be' kind of message.

What was especially interesting for me today was that I also randomly decided to head over to the Newman Center for mass rather than waiting to go in the morning. By the time we got to Fr. Thomas' homily I was feeling a little odd...almost creeped out. His entire homily was about how it isn't worth it to look back on your decisions and worry that you've gone the wrong direction in your life. That the grass may seem greener on the other side just because you aren't close enough to see the weeds that are there.

Did you ever feel like the big guy upstairs was trying to get a message across to you? Evidently, today mine was all about learning not to worry about my decisions...maybe the grad school I've chosen is the place I'm meant to be next year after all.