On my birthday, I went to an outdoor theater showing "The Greatest Showman." I'd never seen it before.
It was quite the experience. Circuses have never exactly been my cup of tea, but I found myself enjoying it. I was swept along into the story, and I found it refreshing.
It was refreshing, for instance, to see a family portrayed that way. The wife and children who adore their husband and father and who support him and believe in him. It was nice to see a "dreamer" father portrayed better than the "shiftless," dad who does the dreaming while his wife ends up doing most of the work. I don't know anything about the man Barnum actually was; I imagine the truth is nastier than the movie.
However, in this case it doesn't matter as much to me. What mattered is the makers of the movie took the trouble to show a healthy, beautiful family, led by a father, supported and followed by his wife and children.
You see at least three types of love portrayed across the story line. The glamorous Miss Jenny Lind, drawn by Barnum's charm and dreams, might be one.
"You set off a dream in me..." she sings, "Will you share this with me?"
" 'Cause darling, without you
All the shine of a thousand spotlights,
All the stars we steal from the night sky
Will never be enough
Never be enough
Towers of gold are still too little,
These hands could hold the world, but it'll
Never be enough
Never be enough
For me."
I was glad that in the movie, Barnum stands firm against temptation. I was bracing myself for him to fall, but he did not. Though tempted, he rejects her and immediately takes himself away from her. I liked seeing that portrayed on screen.
(And you better believe I love that song, by the way!)
I had heard (and memorized) the song, "Rewrite the Stars," before I saw the movie. I absolutely love it...but I've heard its message many, many times before. Yes, we write our own destiny, we are given the freedom to choose our own actions and the consequences that come with them. There's something archetypal about the Masculine attempting to pursue and win the Feminine. To bring her out of her past, to lead her into a better future, to pledge and to convince her of the depth of his love. When she takes to the air he follows her, joining her in her element in a dance of strength, elegance, and passion.
I love the triumph in their voices as they sing:
"Nothing can keep us apart!
'Cause you are the one I was meant to find!
It's up to you
And it's up to me
No one can say what we get to be!
Why don't we rewrite the stars
Changing the world to be ours?"
But the scene that moved me the most was a different song: "Tightrope."
This is Charity's song. Her husband is far away, and we see her tucking her little girls in for the night. She's drawing the curtains and preparing for another night alone.
In stories we often see the discontented wife. We see her embittered, snapping, or at best, falling apart, at her wit's end. In this song, we see something that is not often portrayed, let alone glamorized as it deserves to be. This is the song of the patient, faithful wife. She does not resent her husband's dreams, she revels in them. She misses him, but is not angry at being at home while her husband is away. Instead, she looks well to her household.
She sings:
"Some people long for a life that is simple and planned
Tied with a ribbon
Some people won't sail the sea 'cause they're safer on land
To follow what's written
But I'd follow you to the great unknown
Off to a world we call our own.
Mountains and valleys and all that will come in between
Desert and ocean
You pull me in and together we're lost in a dream
Always in motion
So I risk it all just to be with you
And I risk it all for this life we choose.
Hand in my hand
And you promised to never let go
We're walking a tightrope
High in the sky
We can see the whole world down below
We're walking a tightrope
Never sure, will you catch me if I should fall?
Well, it's all an adventure
That comes with a breathtaking view
Walking a tightrope
With you."
She knows how fragile all this is. Her husband is risking money he doesn't have for this success. So many things could happen that would cause it all to tumble down. And she knows he's out there working closely with the alluring Jenny Lind. She knows the risk, but she's trusting him all the same. She loves him.
I love the image in the song. Walking a tightrope with a partner. There's no net beneath them. If one of them strays, they both plunge into ruin. Marriage is a promise to never let go, whatever happens.
It would be giddy joy if it weren't for the sobering danger and intense concentration not to fall. And it would be paralyzing fear if it weren't for the thrill of being up so high alone with your best friend and love of your life.
It's worth all the danger to be there with him. It's worth all the risk to have this, her husband, her little ones, this life together.
If you ask me what true love looks like, I would say it would look like her, spinning and dancing in the moonlight, waiting for him, trusting him to come home to her. Still dreaming and nurturing and hopeful. Embracing the adventure of it all, risking her heart for love.
Is there anything more beautifully Feminine in this world?
It's these little moments that go unsung. Bravery that is not seen, or lauded, or even always rewarded. This is the romance of life. Love mingled with sorrow, hope mixed with fear. To understand the terms and the risk, and to choose to still dance within it. Every once in a while, it's nice to see a moment like that put on the screen.
I am, and always have been a dreamer, an incurable romantic. People today foolishly think that means I'm blind to the world around me. No, I see it. I see it all. My dreams do not blind me to the truth, they are reflections of the Truth; the Promises by which I live. I do my little duties each day, and I tuck myself into a lonely bed every night. And I wake up and I do it again. I don't know what will happen. I don't know if I'll get to be loved, or get to have children of my own to nurture.
I'm waiting, and I don't know if I'll be rewarded the way I hope to be. But I can't give up. I won't fall away, because this is what is right. My allegiance is to a greater King, and I gave my heart to Him long ago. I don't get to know what will happen. I have to carry this cross of uncertainty, pain, and fear. This loneliness is mine to bear, and I will stand up under it.
I'm not really alone, I know that. His Spirit lives in me, and He sees me. That's the reassurance that the incurable romantics of the world don't have. I too, am alone in the night, wondering what will happen. And even though I know He's with me, I still have to feel lonely. One can live their life doing everything possible to shout down that persistent loneliness. I embrace it. I choose to trust that Jesus Christ has ransomed me and adopted me as His daughter. He means to come back for me one of these days. I'll see His face and I'll marvel that I ever doubted Him.
It'll all come right in the end. My story isn't over.
"Hand in my hand, and You promised to never let go.
I'm walking a tightrope...
Well, it's all an adventure that comes with a breathtaking view--
Walking a tightrope
With You."
~Cadenza
It was quite the experience. Circuses have never exactly been my cup of tea, but I found myself enjoying it. I was swept along into the story, and I found it refreshing.
It was refreshing, for instance, to see a family portrayed that way. The wife and children who adore their husband and father and who support him and believe in him. It was nice to see a "dreamer" father portrayed better than the "shiftless," dad who does the dreaming while his wife ends up doing most of the work. I don't know anything about the man Barnum actually was; I imagine the truth is nastier than the movie.
However, in this case it doesn't matter as much to me. What mattered is the makers of the movie took the trouble to show a healthy, beautiful family, led by a father, supported and followed by his wife and children.
You see at least three types of love portrayed across the story line. The glamorous Miss Jenny Lind, drawn by Barnum's charm and dreams, might be one.
"You set off a dream in me..." she sings, "Will you share this with me?"
" 'Cause darling, without you
All the shine of a thousand spotlights,
All the stars we steal from the night sky
Will never be enough
Never be enough
Towers of gold are still too little,
These hands could hold the world, but it'll
Never be enough
Never be enough
For me."
I was glad that in the movie, Barnum stands firm against temptation. I was bracing myself for him to fall, but he did not. Though tempted, he rejects her and immediately takes himself away from her. I liked seeing that portrayed on screen.
(And you better believe I love that song, by the way!)
I had heard (and memorized) the song, "Rewrite the Stars," before I saw the movie. I absolutely love it...but I've heard its message many, many times before. Yes, we write our own destiny, we are given the freedom to choose our own actions and the consequences that come with them. There's something archetypal about the Masculine attempting to pursue and win the Feminine. To bring her out of her past, to lead her into a better future, to pledge and to convince her of the depth of his love. When she takes to the air he follows her, joining her in her element in a dance of strength, elegance, and passion.
I love the triumph in their voices as they sing:
"Nothing can keep us apart!
'Cause you are the one I was meant to find!
It's up to you
And it's up to me
No one can say what we get to be!
Why don't we rewrite the stars
Changing the world to be ours?"
But the scene that moved me the most was a different song: "Tightrope."
This is Charity's song. Her husband is far away, and we see her tucking her little girls in for the night. She's drawing the curtains and preparing for another night alone.
In stories we often see the discontented wife. We see her embittered, snapping, or at best, falling apart, at her wit's end. In this song, we see something that is not often portrayed, let alone glamorized as it deserves to be. This is the song of the patient, faithful wife. She does not resent her husband's dreams, she revels in them. She misses him, but is not angry at being at home while her husband is away. Instead, she looks well to her household.
She sings:
"Some people long for a life that is simple and planned
Tied with a ribbon
Some people won't sail the sea 'cause they're safer on land
To follow what's written
But I'd follow you to the great unknown
Off to a world we call our own.
Mountains and valleys and all that will come in between
Desert and ocean
You pull me in and together we're lost in a dream
Always in motion
So I risk it all just to be with you
And I risk it all for this life we choose.
Hand in my hand
And you promised to never let go
We're walking a tightrope
High in the sky
We can see the whole world down below
We're walking a tightrope
Never sure, will you catch me if I should fall?
Well, it's all an adventure
That comes with a breathtaking view
Walking a tightrope
With you."
She knows how fragile all this is. Her husband is risking money he doesn't have for this success. So many things could happen that would cause it all to tumble down. And she knows he's out there working closely with the alluring Jenny Lind. She knows the risk, but she's trusting him all the same. She loves him.
I love the image in the song. Walking a tightrope with a partner. There's no net beneath them. If one of them strays, they both plunge into ruin. Marriage is a promise to never let go, whatever happens.
It would be giddy joy if it weren't for the sobering danger and intense concentration not to fall. And it would be paralyzing fear if it weren't for the thrill of being up so high alone with your best friend and love of your life.
It's worth all the danger to be there with him. It's worth all the risk to have this, her husband, her little ones, this life together.
If you ask me what true love looks like, I would say it would look like her, spinning and dancing in the moonlight, waiting for him, trusting him to come home to her. Still dreaming and nurturing and hopeful. Embracing the adventure of it all, risking her heart for love.
Is there anything more beautifully Feminine in this world?
It's these little moments that go unsung. Bravery that is not seen, or lauded, or even always rewarded. This is the romance of life. Love mingled with sorrow, hope mixed with fear. To understand the terms and the risk, and to choose to still dance within it. Every once in a while, it's nice to see a moment like that put on the screen.
I am, and always have been a dreamer, an incurable romantic. People today foolishly think that means I'm blind to the world around me. No, I see it. I see it all. My dreams do not blind me to the truth, they are reflections of the Truth; the Promises by which I live. I do my little duties each day, and I tuck myself into a lonely bed every night. And I wake up and I do it again. I don't know what will happen. I don't know if I'll get to be loved, or get to have children of my own to nurture.
I'm waiting, and I don't know if I'll be rewarded the way I hope to be. But I can't give up. I won't fall away, because this is what is right. My allegiance is to a greater King, and I gave my heart to Him long ago. I don't get to know what will happen. I have to carry this cross of uncertainty, pain, and fear. This loneliness is mine to bear, and I will stand up under it.
I'm not really alone, I know that. His Spirit lives in me, and He sees me. That's the reassurance that the incurable romantics of the world don't have. I too, am alone in the night, wondering what will happen. And even though I know He's with me, I still have to feel lonely. One can live their life doing everything possible to shout down that persistent loneliness. I embrace it. I choose to trust that Jesus Christ has ransomed me and adopted me as His daughter. He means to come back for me one of these days. I'll see His face and I'll marvel that I ever doubted Him.
It'll all come right in the end. My story isn't over.
"Hand in my hand, and You promised to never let go.
I'm walking a tightrope...
Well, it's all an adventure that comes with a breathtaking view--
Walking a tightrope
With You."
~Cadenza
