Considering Buffy...

every now and then, i have to pause to consider characters or stories that pull on something in my heart. to be honest, i find that considering those moments more deeply actually opens a window into a person's calling and the real story she was meant to live. fictitious, mythical characters are actually more helpful for me because they force me to notice principles as opposed to being distracted by circumstances.

i've been laid up for a bit with a back problem, so i've been filling my horizontal time with seasons of 'buffy the vampire slayer'. i know, i know...it's odd...but she's actually had me considering...noticing what inspires me, what grieves me...things that point to real existence for me.

i included the photo above, not so much because of her, but because the saying in the upper corner says "see the world. it's how you see the world." i had to mention that because i have found that our perspective on the world (it's people, and their value) really drives what we fight for...and if we even fight in the first place. it's one of the things i love about her character...she fights because she believes there is something of value to defend.

i received an email the other day. it said, "how would you live your life if you truly knew how important the heart really is?" it struck me to the core and has continued to resurface in my buffy adventures. the human heart...the most precious of all creations...is it really worth fighting for...no matter the consequence...a war of abandon???

she has me considering...

and buffy's war...it's not against people...it's against evil. in fact, she's often working for the restoration of people who've fallen, who've become pawns instead of players. sometimes that means she has to stand against them until they turn...it's a tough thing, but it's always because she believes they could be more. sometimes, sadly, they don't come back, but the chance that they might makes the fight worth fighting.

buffy has a fellowship of friends that walk with her too. all of them couldn't live without each other. however, she also bears a kind of lonliness, and i can so relate to that. i imagine many can. there are things she has to bear sometimes that others cannot relate to, decisions she has to make that can go uncheered, strength and hope that she has to muster when others succumb to fear. i don't know...some of that gels with real life on occasion.

but you know what struck me in the end???...she begins to be more intentional in investing in others. other girls specifically. she begins to show them what she is daily learning...fighting as women can.

so...in a very odd sort of way...buffy has given me an appointment with "calling". her drama of slaying vampires...yes, i told you it was odd...has pushed on some things that i think god wants me to notice.

i wonder if this will help with my manifesto...:)