| ANNE WILLIAMSON |
Robin Williams has died. Like me, you probably didn't know him personally. Consequently, my grief, our grief, if that's what it is, moves a bit strangely: real but detached; from empathy for him and his family and close friends to reminiscing on acting roles.
What are your Robin Williams memories? I remember, as a kid one summer, the Good Morning, Vietnam soundtrack, including Williams' comedic monologues, played almost nonstop in my dad's car. Then, there came Hook, the genie in Aladdin's bottle and Mrs. Doubtfire. On my first date with my husband we saw The Birdcage, and the first time I thought I loved him came after watching Jumanji - odd, I know. And, of course, there's Good Will Hunting, Patch Adams and others.
My favorite Williams' movie, though, is Dead Poets Society. Being only 8 when it was released, I discovered it years later. I loved it; it was serious and sad, but also funny, inspiring and hopeful. It was life. I've shared one of my favorite scenes below. For me, then and now, this scene speaks to vocation - a spiritual word meaning what you are here to do, where you are uniquely called to love the world. Though grammatically I must put a period after its definition, for most of us, really, it needs a question mark. That is, we don't yet know what we're here to do, where we're called to love. And, even if we do, it's ever-evolving and hard, requiring faith and courage. This topic, among others, will be explored this fall in WAYgroups around Indianapolis; if you're interested, let me know. For now, though, let's LISTEN to and LEARN from Wiliams' words and begin to LOVE together.
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What's stirring in you? Where are you feeling led to love this week?
My suggestion: If you haven't or haven't in a long time, consider your vocation, your calling, your gift to the world. Do you know what it is? Or, what it is now, in a new season of life? Do you want to know? What excites you about the process of discovering it or living it? What terrifies you? All answers are acceptable, as long as they're honest. Remember, Jonah? He spent 3 days in a whale to avoid his vocation. Temporary fear or confusion is okay, but eventually, I encourage you to be willing to ask and explore and live the answer to, "What will my verse be?" It is so worth it!