I just got home from seeing the movie Dark Waters. It was reminiscent of Erin Brockovich, but with larger-scale corruption and a less entertaining, sassy protagonist. In short, it's a crazy-but-true story about a billion-dollar corporation that knowingly poisoned millions of people (a number that continues to expand) in order to keep manufacturing and producing their Teflon products.
It's a David and Goliath kind of victory where this unknown attorney takes on this massive company and refuses to stop fighting and let it go. They spend 99 percent of the movie showing you how terrible and dangerous these chemicals are and the numerous awful side effects and birth defects and serious diseases they can cause... then at the very end, they put up text that tells you this unregulated, water-repelling chemical that our bodies are not designed to break down (PFOA/C-8) is currently believed to be in the bloodstream of 99% of all living creatures, including humans.
Umm, awesome. So we'll all just get up and leave the theater now? I was inappropriately tempted to laugh when I read it. I was already thinking there was really no way to contain that type of toxic damage when it's gone on for decades and affected so many people and animals, but reading that sentence was still jarring and disturbing, and I don't know what to do with that information. It left me with a heavy, depressed feeling that nothing we consume is safe and we're all basically screwed and there's not much we can do about it. (#ecclesiastical)
(I know the point was to bring attention to a serious problem, and the movie was well done. The story also shows that it's good to keep fighting for what's right, even when the odds are against you and it takes longer than you ever thought and you feel overwhelmed... and that's all true.) But I had to recenter and remind myself on the drive home that no matter what happens in the physical world, there is also a spiritual world and a deeper reality and an eternal hope!
Now I'm shifting subjects a bit here, but it's all connected in my mind, and I'll try to pull my thoughts together in the end for anyone who's still reading... a friend and I were talking yesterday about how the rates of depression and suicide are always much higher during the holiday season. How our routine loneliness can feel magnified and the societal pressure to be happy sometimes has an adverse effect, especially after losing someone you love...
Granted, I am still very much in the camp of people who believe Christmas is "the most wonderful time of the year." I love seeing the twinkling lights and hearing the Christmas songs. I decorate early, and I have the word "JOY" prominently displayed in my home in multiple places.
However, I also feel a heightened awareness every Christmas season of the approaching possibility of loss... that the group of people in the holiday photos will change as time moves forward. And with that, I feel a deeper awareness of the sacred beauty and value of my family and friends and spending time together and making memories.
The nights are longer and the daylight is shorter during this time of year, and the metaphorical wind trying to pull me toward depression is undoubtedly stronger... but so is my determination to resist it. Like everyone else, I have to choose joy and kindness. Reality is painful and overwhelming sometimes, and I have to remind myself that God is strong and He is always with me and I can rest in Him.
I took this random selfie at Target the other day because I thought the cheesy mug was cute, but didn't care enough to actually buy it. I really like the metaphorical "cup of cheer" idea, though...
We shouldn't live in denial or project a falsely happy image while avoiding reality (I'm so sick of seeing that I could scream), but we can and should sincerely celebrate God's love and goodness everywhere we see them! There is always something we can be thankful for, and we can choose to be present enough to notice and drink in the cheer and goodness and beauty all around us, even as we acknowledge the painful realities and have grace for those who are hurting (including ourselves in that grace when we're feeling low).
Hmm, well, I rambled on and didn't really tie all that up with a neat little bow, but whatever, I don't have the mental energy for it. lol My original thought was basically that the same way certain widespread, commonly used chemicals can poison and damage our physical bodies, certain socially acceptable thoughts and ideas we consume have a toxic and destructive effect on our souls (which are more valuable than our bodies). And we have to be so vigilant about guarding our hearts and choosing to fix our minds on what is pure and true and good. (Philippians 4:8)
On a final note here, if you are in the middle of a hard season right now, then I strongly encourage you to watch the video below. It's Matt Chandler reflecting on his own cancer experience ten years after being diagnosed. I've listened to it three times now and found it extremely helpful. ❤
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