The Comfort of Familiar Lines

It's been a quiet day of sipping Emergen-C, napping, and finishing my homework... hoping and praying I don't get sick while my roommate nestles in her bed with a sore throat. We decided to watch some Lord of the Rings to relax us, and help us do our homework with a gentle distraction. If anybody knows something about me, it's probably that I am a hopeless Lord of the Rings fan. I am just simply in love. In love with the adventure, in love with the quest, the fantastic characters: the strength of Aragorn, the steadfast devotion and friendship of Sam, Frodo's resilience, Arwen's quiet, fierce beauty, Gandalf's wisdom. I love the scenery, the mysteriousness, the majestic soundtrack. I love that I can simply just listen to what is going on, and the whole movie plays in my head because I've seen it so many times. I love that I can quote it. That I know that it will turn out in the end.

Bekah now sprawls on the floor doing some quality grammar homework, and I eat plain tortilla wraps (yes I know it's weird) while lounging in a bean bag.... she looks up and asks me why LOTR is so relaxing... why is it so comforting?

I pause to think. Perhaps it is the fact that I always watch it with people I love... at home in my cozy basement... with wonderful friends, staying up all hours of the night. No, it goes deeper than that...

I think it is the truth that haunts every scene. The fact that this life is a quest. It's difficult, it's painful, it can be tragic. But it is also full of hope, the beautiful devotion of true friendship, the commitment of unwavering love, and the promise of everything being right in the end.

Every time I set out on marathon-ing this phenomenal story, I know that no matter how happy it seems at the beginning, sadness, trial and death will come. In the times of war and utter hopelessness, I know that that's not the end. I know that there is more coming... and that it's worth fighting for. There is a beautiful, fulfilling end. I just have to keep it in sight... and keep hoping that it's just around the corner.

One of my favorite quotes from the Return of the King:
"But in the end it's only a passing thing, the shadow, even darkness must pass. A new day will come and when the sun shines it will shine out the clearer. Those were the stories that stayed with you. That meant something, even if you were too small to understand why, but I think, Mr. Frodo, I do understand, I know now. The folk in those stories had lots of chances at turning back, only they didn't. They kept going. Because they were holding on to something." -Sam

So even though I've seen it more than 20 times, I set out again on this journey. To experience the adventure, the pain, and the beautiful ending that gives me hope to continue. To hold on, to dig in, to keep fighting.