Quick note: This picture has absolutely nothing to do with this particular post, I just like it. (in my house, on normal sunny days, sometime during the evening usually in the fall and spring, light filters through my front door and makes pretty little rainbows on the wall)
I did not begin my Friday in a good mood. I am the sort of person who prefers to have a smile instead of a frown, but nonetheless it’s kind of difficult for me to fake happiness when I’d rather punch something. I took a few deep breaths walking down the hallway before the first period bell rung (now that I think back… I probably sounded like a woman in labor. Ha.) and entered the classroom ready for anyone and anything to improve my mood. Thankfully, I start my day with my favorite subject, English, and that day we watched a documentary on Hasidism (we’re reading Chaim Potok’s, The Chosen) which was kind of fascinating. From the perspective of an outsider looking in, Hasidism may seem like an overly zealous religious cult and in a way it is. Those people spend a good 70% of their day praying and studying their religious text, the Talmud. They live in their own private world, rejecting modern medias such as the internet and TV, secular ideas and are only socially involved with members of the Hasidic community. I respect their passionate devotion but I understand why some choose to quit the religion and go their own way. Some want freedom and a taste of a life without the 600-something rules they are bound to follow as a Hasid. I envision breaking away from Hasidism sort of like the movie The Wizard of Oz where Dorothy’s world changes from monochromatic sepia and the plain familiarity of her farm life to new and mysterious and wonderful surroundings drenched in vivid color.
The thought-provoking documentary elevated my bad mood to a neutral level. Second period elevated my mood to pure happiness. Chemistry is not my favorite subject by any stretch but who doesn’t enjoy a good chemical reaction with light and sound and explosions? It was a very pretty day to go outside and do a nice potassium chlorate and gummy worm reaction. So that’s what we did! I’m not sure how all these things happened next, but we played a game of tag (yes, we are teenagers… and no, you’re never too old for tag..), a game of 7-up (I have this method where I walk on the desks and stretch down to touch the person’s thumb) and an almost High School Musical moment of singing to John Legend’s All of Me (the bell killed the moment before it could happen, ugh!). I basically live for spontaneous moments like those that happened in chemistry yesterday so I was all smiles in my next (and favorite) class, lunch. Lunch was playing music out loud and realizing that school-made enchiladas are foul and should never be consumed unless you enjoy the gag reflex.
My mood was a 9 out of 10 by the end of the day. When I got home we decided to go to Southlake (my mom let me drive there and I only received one honk!), eat Mexican food and see Transcendence. And wow. That movie blew my mind. How can I even begin to bring justice to it’s intense awesomeness? (warning: a slight spoiler alert) First I want to bring justice to the talent of Mr. Johnny Depp… possibly my favorite actor now that I have seen so many of his films. He always incorporates a signature quirkiness to his diverse spectrum of characters he (seemingly) effortlessly portrays and has this depth and intrigue that blurs the line between acting and reality. So, basically, I love him. The movie itself was thought evoking. The sublime fluidity between biology and technology was beautiful. In a way, Depp became like a god. (This is a touchy subject, but it gets interesting.) His consciousness was transferred to a computer. A computer with as many connections as the human brain and the ability to expand and build on itself like a living organism. A human mind without the limitations of the human mind. Given these new powers and the freedom of immortality he cures diseases, creates miraculous biological and medical innovations and becomes more god-like every day. His wife is disturbed and terrified because she feels like this all-knowing computer-god is no longer her husband. He sees too much, knows her thoughts and feelings. She feels violated and trapped and does not understand that his intentions are only good. The mysterious woman and her thugs, who aim to destroy him, see him as a threat to human society. Unnatural, with mindless, power-hungry and sinister intentions for world-domination. Throughout the movie, I began to see Depp as the enemy and his wife as the victim and the mysterious woman and her thugs as a group of heroes trying to eradicate a being who needed to be destroyed. But… as it turns out… they were wrong. I was wrong. Depp had no intention to dominate the world. He wanted to save it. His wife realized that too late as she lie next to her now-fleshed-out husband whom she had infected with a virus because of her blinding fear. She was dying too. And she knew that this was her husband and had been all along. They died together which I think was perfect. It would have been wrong for her to die still fearing her husband and believing a computer could not love her. The thing is.. he was a computer… and he could love. Love is what drove him to protect his wife and to cure humanity to the best of his ability. It was natural that he should die, because a being given so much power cannot be given infinite immortality; he would be a god then. The legacy that he left was immortal enough. He exists in the rain and purified the earth. The last scene is so simple and gorgeous: a single, crisp, glistening drop of dew sliding off the yellow petal of a sunflower and into a pool of water. The single drop resonates in slow motion into the little pool of water and you see a subtle shiver of electricity that pulses almost imperceptibly, a whisper of the successful effort of a great man.
What a legacy. He made a utopia in a way. He purified the earth, creating a clean slate for humanity. And that is what humanity needs: a clean slate. Maybe that’s what you need as an individual: a clean slate. To be purified and wiped clean and given a fresh start and second chance at life. To redeem yourself, to leave a better legacy or appreciate the wonderful miracle of being alive without the distractions of modern day society. That chance probably won’t come in the form of a powerful computer-consciousness like Transcendence or Noah’s Ark but don’t think it won’t come. Allow yourself to dream and hope and know that you can ascertain the world in any way you choose. I feel like we are fooled into believing that we have limits into what we can think and what we can do according to what we think. Remember that boundaries are made to be surpassed and your most threatening obstacle is your own self-doubt. I certainly doubt myself. I want a flood to (metaphorically, of course) wipe away all of my past mess-ups and self-doubt. God knows how many people feel the same way.
*Funny side-note: I was supposed to post this like five days ago… ha…hahaha…
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