…and the breath to my life.
So goes a line of love repeated in the movie Julie and Julia. I went to see it tonight…a lovely summer night that allowed me the treat of the long walk to and from the movie theater. It was a lovely movie, and no doubt, men from all over the nation are typing that wonderful line that Julia’s husband expresses to her into their blackberries to pull out on an occasion when it might come in handy with their wives. 🙂
For a person who loves cooking, like me, it was lovely. Though both cooked their way through a whole movie, we NEVER saw either of them wash ONE dish! Now THAT’s my kind of cooking!!
For a person who works with courageous people fighting for their marriages, it was inspiring. Imagine, a Hollywood movie where one of the main characters has a solid life-giving marriage that is mutually supportive thoughout the entire movie–thick and thin! Julia Childs and her husband are portrayed as totally in love–based on the letters they wrote to others at that time.
Julie–also married…a few more bumps in the road, though. However, they work at it, and discover ways of connecting and then reconnecting when the relationship becomes strained.
For a person who works with individuals struggling to find their place in the world it resonated. There is a moment when Julie hears that Julia doesn’t care for her blog. She is devastated, and so begins a night of self-flagellation as she beats herself up for Julia Child’s critcal judgement.
Then her husband looks her in the eye and says gently, something to the effect of: The Julia Childs out here doesn’t believe in you. But the Julia Child in there (pointing to her) does, and that is the one that matters. When she wails back something like: But she saved me.
He calmly asserts: No, you saved you.
Love that part–this little light bulb moment that it is her internalization of Julia Childs that helped her find her power, her purpose and her belief in herself. It is irrelevant what the Julia-Childs-in-the-flesh thinks, because that’s not the one that changed her. Her internal-Julia-Childs was the one that inspired, encouraged, challenged and affirmed her–and it changed her.
Reminds me of the proverbial security blanket/binkie or whatever it is that a child carries to immunizations, to the new babysitter’s house, or after a “boo-boo” of some kind. The blanket really does have powerful ways of helping the child cope–and the child needs it, even though, from the rational, you’re-being-silly point of view that an adult has, we know the blanket doesn’t have special powers.
Adults don’t always see what’s real, huh?
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