The Big Five-OH

I met Jason while he was visiting a friend of mine. We all went to a workshop led by a good actor friend of mine. I was excited when he asked if I would contribute to his blog—a story genre I’m just beginning to learn more about. He said any topic I wanted so…

Stories. We all have them. Our lives are a story—a complexity of protagonists and emotions. I love stories in all forms: film, television, books, blogs, in person, etc. Authenticity is key for me. Some of my favorite films and television shows—especially sitcoms, include moments so reflective of a conversation or incident that my husband and I had that we will look at each other and then start to look for the hidden cameras.

I find myself occupying time with the funny stories but my favorite ones are the drama. They are my favorite but they are also the hardest to hear, to read, to see, to portray. These are my favorite because it is usually in the difficult stories that we see humanity and ourselves most accurately.

Some of my favorite “stories” at the moment include Hugh Hefner (Celebrity), David (O.T. Bible,) Brokeback Mountain (Film,) and my friend “Carol”.

I know that list probably raises a few eyebrows but these stories resound with me for one reason or another-it could be because of their authenticity , because of their impact I’ve seen on others, or because I learned or became aware of something new through them.

I think it’s important to really know people in order to connect with them. These days we’re “friends” with a lot of people on Facebook. Often times, and I do it to, we just see people or know little bits of information about them and then we categorize them, write them off or make them a project.

To illustrate more in depth relationships and a better understanding of story I’m going to give a general overview and use broad generalizations of my current favorite stories—ironic, I know.

I’ll never forget the day I learned Hef’s story. I’ll not share it now, but suffice it to say, I can now understand why he is the man he is, why the bunnies, why the magazine. I don’t agree with those things mind you but after hearing his story it is hard to define him by those things alone. It’s difficult to write him off.

David. He is like my judgmental check on religious people and philanderers. Some religious people annoy me and then I think of David dancing in the streets and how not everyone will understand or agree with our religious expressions. And, as far as the philandering, I live in Hollywood and people sure do get around, married or not, and I want to hate the players but that would once again mean writing someone off and defining them by only a small part that I’m privy to. I mean, God allows David to be defined as a man after his own heart even after having a dude killed just to have sex with his wife.

Brokeback Mountain. Saw this film twice in a row. To me, it is the embodiment of the quote “ Men living lives of quiet desperation. “ The feel of the film is dead on mid-west. I’ve never watched it and thought “homosexuality.” I’ve never watched it though and haven’t for days afterward thought about the quiet desperation I see in everyone around me, the war that people fight everyday or the one they’ve resigned themselves to not winning. There’s no agenda-though those with a bias or those who’ve never seen it would say otherwise. It just is and the depth in the portrayal of the story is so accurate that it is brilliant.

And finally there is Carol. She is an older lady who has done well for herself in Los Angeles, which is evidenced only by her large amount of ridiculously expensive jewelry and her cars. For years-because she does not like anyone right away and she barely likes anyone period, the most I knew about her was that she used to party hard and that she was somebody’s mistress for most her life and that she watched a lot of television.

It blew my mind when she told me what her favorite movie was that she has watched at least once a week her entire life- The 10 Commandments. I asked why and that began the first of many great conversations.

What is your story? Whose story have you heard recently that taught you something about yourself or the world around you? Is there a book, television show, comic whose story you really dig and why.

If you need some help and inspiration for your personal story I highly recommend Donald Millers book-A Million Miles in a Thousand Years. He has a great story and is great at telling them.