Lean on me, emphasis on "me"

Dear Blog Diary,

“When you're destroying your braincells, you're doing the same thing as killing yourself; you're just doing it slower! Now I say if you wanna kill yourself, don't fuck around with it! Go on and do it EXPEDITIOUSLY!” - Morgan Freeman as Joe Clark in Lean on Me, confronting a student who smokes crack.

I love the film Peanut Butter Falcon. My favorite line of the entire movie comes from Tyler played by Shia LeBeouf. Zak the main character and Tyler are struggling to communicate. Zak says, “I want you to know about me. I am a Down syndrome person.”

Tyler replies, “I don’t really give a shit.”

I could ramble about my favorite anime, Samurai Champloo. For this entry, I’ll focus on the episode with the blind assassin, Sara. Mugen hits on her constantly as Fu scolds him. Sara is sweet, reserved, and the only character in the series that Jin and Mugen can’t beat.

Mugen ultimately kills her because she holds back. There’s more to it but she has a soft spot for Mugen because even though he is a vulgar brute, he never treats her differently because she is blind.

Actor Tom Hardy does jiu jitsu. In 2022 he won a comp under his real name Edward Hardy. Imagine you entered, then Bane himself is squared up with you. Apparently to one opponent, Tom said:

“Just pretend it’s not me.”

We live in a world so consumed by viewing people by what they are instead of who they are. Yes, who you are is made up of what you are, but there's so much more to you. And the only way to find out who a person is: time, effort, and earned vulnerability.

My second favorite line from Peanut Butter Falcon comes again from Tyler. They need to cross a river and Zak can’t swim. They finagle a set up for him to cross. Zak is scared, “Tyler, am I going to die?”

He replies, comforting him:

“Yeah! You're gonna die, it's a matter of time. That ain't the question. The question's whether they're gonna have a good story to tell about you when you're gone. Now don't be a bitch. Let's go.”

Just a reminder: LIVE your life to the fullest, don’t dumb people down to what they are, and as always…be kind.

Also, don’t fuck around and do it expeditiously.

Best,

E

#ARTiculate