real
June 11, 2009
the sight of a tree like this does a deep thing in me.
there’s a scene in the film, The Last Samurai, when the war has raged and the Samurai have thrown themselves relentlessly at their opponents. The leading Samurai warrior has been wounded and it’s time for him to die (the warriors are still surrounded by the Westernized, Japanese troops).
as he’s passing away in his white “brother’s” arms, he looks up and sees a cherry tree, who’s blossom’s are lightly floating down all around them. his eyes glaze over as he whispers, “Perfect. They’re all perfect.” and with his dying, all the opposing troops bow down, faces to the ground, to honor this great warrior.
the sight of a tree like this does a deep thing in me. something deeply spiritual. there is a place that my soul goes, and my heart longs to live there–a place that is simple. . . quiet. . . real. or is it real? is there this place? or am i caught up and swept away and lost in something idealistic and ultimately false?
i don’t know.
but i do know that i long for it, this place, as for something lost. and couldn’t that mean that it was once had if it is now lost? i hope so. there is beauty in the longing.
i want to live somewhere with a cherry tree close by before i die.
Wow, this is a really beautiful piece of writing. You definately have a lot of talent! I wanted to tell you that I’ve noticed the way you participate in class and you always seem to really have encouraging responses to what people say. I noticed that in the Feather Group for Levy’s class today when you didn’t just look at people’s logos and nod along, but you kinda mumbled approval, which I think is great. I think this kind of passion is really going to make you an amazing Literature teacher. Your students are going to love you because they’re going to know that you really think their creations are beautiful.
And I love that movie by the way. I love that the warriors respect this man they’ve been fighting against as being great and honorable. They respect everything he represents, even if they don’t agree with it. It’s kind of like that saying by someone I don’t remember, “I might not agree with what you have to say, but I’ll defend to the death your right to say it.”