Stories

So I was having dinner at a Thai restaurant with my tennis mom and her family, and one of them asked me if I believe that everything happens for a reason. Which I do. Now. But that wasn’t always the case. Before I struggled with how to make sense of accidents and cancer and infant deaths. And to be honest, I still do. So now I try to stay focused on making sense of my own path, which is hard enough.

Then the conversation turned into a very pointed inquisition about what I believe to be true about God and the nature of the universe. Which I thought was weird, because what the heck do I know? Clearly these people have not been reading my blog.

Afterwards we came home and watched The Lego Movie, which was awesome! Just like the theme song says. That may seem completely unrelated, but I think it happened for a reason. Because the basic line of questioning was, how do you know that what you believe to be true isn’t just some made up story?

Emmet is an ordinary construction worker who is so average that no one can say anything that stands out about him. But then he finds The Piece of Resistance, which is the sign that he is “the special”–the one who the prophesy foretold is destined to save the world. It turns out that the wise old man Vitruvius made the prophesy up, yet it was still true that Emmet was chosen as the hero by some higher power.

The Lego Movie is also a made up story. So is Avatar, The Matrix, and Kung Fu Panda–my 3 favorite movies. They’ve all made tons of money, and I think this is because they all have a message about how understanding our destiny and the nature of the universe requires a leap of faith in ourselves.

I’m no theologian, but I believe that God is ok with whatever story makes sense to us, as long as it brings us closer to him.

I think this doodle looks like legos.