Choose your own adventure.
“ And what I recall of Sunday school was that the more difficult something became, the more rewarding it was in the end.” - Big Fish
There have been thousands of movies that I have watched in my life time, and still none have had as profound an impact on my as Big Fish. It’s fantastical nature, and it’s amazing acting/story telling have always made it one of my favorite movies on a very long list of favorite movies.
What makes Big Fish go so above and beyond being just a good movie to me is the message that it preaches. Edward Bloom tells us his embellished story of perseverance to try and become the person he wants to be, and live the life he aspires to have. No matter what impossible obstacles come before him, he makes his way through, and keeps going with a strength of will and moral code that constantly inspires me to want to be a better person.
I’ve always tried to do good by all of my friends, and have tried to follow the basic Hero’s complex that has engulfed me since I was a kid. To this day, I still put my own plans second if any of my friends need help with something. The main feeling driving this altruistic response of mine is the basic hope that I can help them become the amazing people that they have it within them to be.
I have a great deal of friends, but there are only a few that I consider to be people that I would do anything for. These people can call me at any time of the day with any problems, and I’ll answer if I’m conscious enough to know that I’m not in Mario’s world, that’s just my ringtone. I’ve always felt that to give yourself to the world and the people you care about is what we’re all here for, and I’m glad that the stories that raised me of Hercules, Superman, Batman, and Jackie Chan (Animated and Real Life) have imbued me with this way of going through life.
Edward Bloom is also driven by the same force, as well as the power that was brought on by his knowledge of how he is supposed to die. This story point amazed me when I first saw it in the movie, and blew my mind. How INCREDIBLE it would be to go into any situation, and think, “This isn’t how I die”. What would scare you?
And this is what I’m struggling so hard to realize in my day to day life, the realization that the random situations that I come across on a day to day basis WON’T Kill me, and I’m in control of how I react to them. Letting the fear have any hold of me is a complete waste of my time, and essentially a waste of my life.
There’s only one turn we get to play this 3D game, and every moment counts. Fate will only go so far to show you which page to turn to next. It’s up to you to decide if you’re strong enough to face the Dragon that’s on page 38, or if you wanna play it safe and hang out at home on page 119. The choice is up to each of us. But if you don’t turn the page to face that Dragon at some point, eventually, your book will be a pretty stale read…
