Musings on the Golden Globes

I just finished watching the Golden Globes with my 84 year old grandma. She lived through WW2 ("The Imitation Game"), watched the rise of Stephen Hawking ("Theory of Everything"), embraced the Civil Rights Movement ("Selma") and the felt the immediate impact of the early rise and spreading of the HIV-AIDS epidemic ("The Normal Heart). So while these portrayals of history were being honored, I was with someone who saw it in living color. In real life.

As I think of the extraordinary stories that emerged from these treacherous times, I can't help but think that in 30, 40, 50 years we will be watching movie stars celebrate their roles in films about this moment, this time. We are living in a time where fear is pervasive. We are supposed to be afraid of the government, the economy, the moderates, the conservatives, the progressives, the extremists. We are scared of those hired to protect and serve us, and equally as fearful of those who object to their use and abuse of power.

Yet, today, despite all that fear, we saw the world unite. We heard the story of a muslim man who saved many lives in that Jewish grocery store by hiding customers downstairs. We saw rallies and marches around the world, uniting us in solidarity, together, with one clear, succinct message: We will not live in fear. We will not be afraid to be honest. We are in this together. No matter the consequence.

So, while these grand stories of historical proportions were celebrated, it is almost as compelling that a film about a boy growing up in dysfunction, with flawed people surrounding him, "Boyhood," won Best Picture (Drama). All of these stories must be told, but raw, vulnerable humanity endures. That's not to say that it's either or. That's just to say that sometimes watching a boy become a man and watching people fuck up and do their best along the way unites us in the same way that tragedy, that terror, forges us anew.

We live in dark times, if all we think about is what is happening outside of us. We live in bountiful, joyful, wonderous times, if we simply remember we are all fucked up, just trying to do our best along the way.