"The Big Chill"
(Dink: The sound my phone makes when I receive a text message)
Dink: Do you ever wonder what you will be remembered for?
~shoes~: Hmmmmmmm....
~shoes~: I will have students that, hopefully, I will run through their minds as having been an influence...
~shoes~: Other than that... and my kids... probably not much.
~shoes~: I've noticed that two years after colleagues have died or retired at work, there isn't a footprint that they've left behind.
~shoes~: A friend of mine... an artist... that did all of that great work during his life time... his kids are having to give his work away...
~shoes~: *Shrugs*
~shoes~: Why do you ask?
Dink: Yeah... that's what you said...
Dink: I'm going to leave a footprint...
Dink: I was just wondering...
~shoes~: What's it going to be?
Dink: I don't know...
Turner Classic Movies ran 'The Big Chill' last night... it was on shortly after the above text exchange...
If you are familiar with the movie, a group of friends are coming together to attend the funeral of Alex, one of their group from college days.
Over the days... from the funeral until they all return to their 'normal' lives, you learn of the heart aches, pains, failures, and missed opportunities that they had suffered.
The cast of the movie is unbelievably GREAT! William Hurt is astounding in playing his character. Superbly understated...
The focal point of the movie is Alex... and he never appears. He is the deceased... he committed suicide. I think that it is interesting that Alex's girlfriend is present... and during the course of the movie, it is evident that the Alex she knew is different from the Alex they remember...
Alex was orginally played by Kevin Costner, but in a moment of sheer genius, the director decided to cut ALL of Costner's scenes... leaving Alex to be as much of an enigma as possible...
Sooo...
What will your footprint be?
Neil Armstrong left his imprint,
yet some idiot in the news announced that
astronaut, Neil Young had died
Will you be remembered?
Will your time alive have made any difference??
Does it matter???
Why is it that I have become infatuated with a Grand Mother that I never knew??
Is it possible for someone who is no longer alive
to impact the life of someone born long after she died?
I've got too many questions for a Sunday afternoon...
~shoes~
Geesh!, I remember the movie and no, I didn't know Costner was cast as Alex... Man, u and your trivia...I found the movie so full of troubled folk, and don't u think it transcends well today? I think whoever knew Alex saw what they wanted to see... I bet they saw the hurting side but did not want to reach out or didn't know how.. so similar to today, tho, I think we all have more chutzpah to step forward and recognize and empathize and not sit on the sidelines like back when that movie was made...
ReplyDeleteFootprints? Well my husband left some and people did make a conscious effort to remember him... That lasted about 5 years... But over time, people move on and don't bring up those 'prints' any more... In fact I have lost communication w/some... I think its for the best because his boss still mourns my husband's death... He hasn't moved on... Red, its been 12 years and his boss still mourns, I can hear the pain in his voice... I don't think he will ever move on. Anywho, it only matters to whoever cares to have it matter...
As far as your infatuation about your Grandmother who u have never known, its the mystery... and the history... I am so glad I have my grandparents' history- amazing handwritten journals, immigration papers, etc. Can't get any better than that! :-)
Hi, Chris... there are things that hold us all back in our lives. Why do you think your husband's boss still mourns so?
DeleteI wish I had hand written journals from my long-gone family members. There is a Bible in the family from a great great grand father that I would love to have some day... but who knows.
Re: Alex... several said that had they known, they would have reached out... there were jokes about comments made, references made to Alex that could have caused him to do what he did.
I'm jealous of your journals and immigration papers!!
~shoes~
I hope I'll leave a footprint. I sometimes wonder if it's possible in this day and age though - so many people want to BE SOMEBODY and so many fail. Even the ones who make it, the ones who leave something behind tends to be forgotten quite quickly.
ReplyDeleteI hope I'll leave enough of a print for at least one person to be inspired by...
Hey you... your concerns are mine as well. In this day and age, does anyone even care?
DeleteI think your last statement sums up my thoughts as well...
*sighs*
I hope all is well with you...
~shoes~
I think about that all the time. I am actually writing an autobiography so my family will know all the things they forgot to ask me during my life.
ReplyDeleteJJ... what a GRAND idea!!!
DeleteThis is something worth considering!
~shoes~
if I am remembered by one person whose life I have touched, then it will all be worthy.
ReplyDeleteYes... very well said, Ana...
DeleteThat would make it all worthwhile...
:o)
~shoes~
The liberties and freedoms you and all Americans enjoy will be my footprint
ReplyDeleteMost definitely, Kurt!!
DeleteFor all the sacrifice that members of the military have made since Day 1, there has never been enough done for you guys...
~shoes~
Children of a Lesser God, The Big Chill, Altered States... lets have a William Hurt movie marathon!
ReplyDeleteI can't keep my feet out of my ass or mouth long enough to leave a footprint.
The people who don't give a shit about leaving footprints, leave the biggest marks.
Hi there, Steven...as long as we are adding William Hurt movies, let's add 'Body Heat'...
ReplyDeleteThat movie sizzled...
The people who don't give a shit about leaving footprints, leave the biggest marks.
This is SO true!!!!
~shoes~
I've decided I've already left my footprint. I am much loved...
ReplyDeleteTo me - that's the most important thing. I am someone's first thought each morning.
And! I've also decided I don't care if I'm remembered or not... I won't know 'cause I'll be swimmin' with the lil' fishes in some body of water... But not for a long time. I have things to do... Trees to see.
Hey there, Gobblelyn... there's not a thing in the world wrong with being much loved!!
Delete'Things to do... trees to see...'
Sounds like a great plan to me!
~shoes~
The best that we can hope for is to leave behind good ripples...
ReplyDeleteHmm...
DeleteA few good nipples???
I can drink to that...
Oh...
RIPPLES!!!
My bad...
~shoes~
This is a good post Professor Red Shoes.
ReplyDeleteA post of u pondering one's life.
I walk in a cemetery every weekend. And think about the who the people are in the grave. And sometimes, I stand at their gravestone and calculate their age at their death. And I look around at who is around them. Do they have the same last names? Are they family members?
I think it is good to think about ur grandmother and wonder who she was and what she is like. Someone in my family has already gone way way way back in our family's history. He is kind of protective of that information now but I hope to take over it when he passes and carry on.
It's good to see u in this frame of mind.
My pups' footprints are walking through my heart right now. But more importantly, I am realizing to "treasure" family/friends in my life while they are here with me. One day they will be gone and I want to know that I spent time with them whether it be in person or via writing.
Have a blessed Monday!!!
Hell... most of my posts DO ponder the meaning of Life...
DeleteUnless they are pondering something really dumb...
I hope all is well with you...
~shoes~
And he's got an award to prove it, too. ;)
DeleteWill your time alive have made any difference.... I'm afraid the answer is probably not. So what?
ReplyDeleteI'm thinking you are right, Grumpster...
DeleteI think about that often when I work on my family tree... early members of my family that came from regions of Germany, or there in Holland... that, here... a whole bunch of years later, someone is mentioning his or her name.
They are totally gone, are they?
~shoes~
Family is great, Shoes.... while they last. Nothing makes me more blue than the thought of losing more relatives. These past few years have not been good in that department, I tell ya. In the end we will all be forgotten, unless one of us is a Shakespeare or, better yet, a Presley. ;)
DeleteBut, hey, we're still here PLUS it's Saturday again, so bottoms up, my friend. Here's to life while it lasts.
The Big Chill is a great movie! And no, I had no idea about Kevin Costner, thanks for that. I hope to leave a footprint of some kind. Perhaps in prose or something else. I don't quite know what that is yet.
ReplyDeleteHi, Yvonne... thank you for coming by.
DeleteI agree.. I think it would be nice to have something left behind that would cause others to remember us.
It's kind of like that character, Del Gue... when he is first introduced, he is bald headed. Later in the movie, when he re-appears, he had a full head of hair, and his comment is that maybe he will be remembered on some Indian brave's lodge pole... meaning that someday, maybe an Indian would kill him, scalp him... and his scalp would serve as memory to that person of his existence.
Of course, that's not the way I want to be remembered!
~shoes~
I really enjoyed watching The Big Chill. I really hope that I can make a positive difference to people's lives.
ReplyDeletewww.modernworld4.blogspot.com
Hi there, Gina...
DeleteI agree... making a positive difference in others' lives...
I think that would be the best possible outcome!!
Thank you for stopping by!!
~shoes~
someone else just mentioned The Big Chill - its been years... I need to sit down and watch it again. Maybe tonight. It's chilly and rainy here.
ReplyDeleteI just found this silly picture of my father. It was in the local paper. He was having his toe nails trimmed at the podiatrist. Somehow this was newsworthy, I think because a marathon was approaching. I need to do a blog post about it. thanks for the prompt! For some reason I am more focused on recording memories of my father than leaving footprints - but that will change with time.
Hi there, Monkey Girl...
DeleteI like movies like that... they set off all kinds of thoughts in my head....
Have you ever wondered why it's your Father that captures your focus?
It's like Grand Mother Brown... I have this fascination with her... and it's her heritage that I seem to be tracing back into time...
I hope all is going well with you... :o)
~shoes~
Fantastic post shoes! I haven't seen the film but I'm aware of the storyline.
ReplyDeleteRE:
Is it possible for someone who is no longer alive
to impact the life of someone born long after she died?
I think so. Ever since my mom's sudden illness and death I try to live each day in the moment by being happy and positive. As for leaving footprints-- hopefully somewhere along the line I will have done something, written or perhaps said something that touched someone's heart.
P.S. Your Blue friend's got a present for you. Well, HERE of course.
ReplyDeleteThe answer: By just living your life in the moment, surrounded by people you know and don't know, you are leaving a "footprint" or a legacy that is valuable beyond price. I am reminded of that when I run into someone from my distant past and they recall something I did or said that gave them fresh perspective and motivation to their lives at that time. That is the measure of my success in my humble opinion. As a professor, as a teacher, you have that gift as well.
ReplyDelete