Last night I ended up watching a bit of The Nightmare Before Christmas while trying to "study". It had been who knows how long since I had seen this last and I found it intriguing as I thought about what the filmmakers tried to communicate.
To me, it's about someone who, deep down, feels unsatisfied with his life. When he stumbles upon something inspiring and good, he thinks that he has found a new purpose and calling. He then spends spends all of his time trying to understand and internalize this great new thing he has found. The unfortunate problem is that in the process he tries to become something he is not. A good friend tries to warn him that spending so much time and effort in becoming someone entirely different will only end in disaster, but he remains blinded by a false, impossible and unreasonable vision of the future.
It's a story about how Jack has to learn to embrace the inherent worth of his talents and character.
Here is a short scene that to me was particularly beautiful as it portrayed a major turning point in the story. Here, his dreams and efforts literally get shot down. Yet through the grace and mercies of heaven (as depicted by the angel and open book) he is offered a second chance to become who he was born to be. Here, he realizes that because he tried to be someone he couldn't be, he ended up spoiling not only his dreams, but the happiness of the innocent people around him. He becomes satisfied with his role as the "Pumpkin King".
I realized once again that I am frequently given opportunities to understand who I really am and be fine with whatever that is.
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