13 September 2011

"The Family Man" Movie Makes a Splash for Me


I have a list of the "perfect" movies, which you can see in the Quasi-Indefatigable Xenolith Store, but this is not one of them.  Don't get me wrong, The Family Man is a wonderful movie and I cry a lot when watching it (actually I would cry in the middle of a horror movie if I actually watched horror movies, so this is not as big a thing as you might think).  In a previous post, I talked about being a lot like George Bailey from It's A Wonderful Life, which I think is true, but I am not Jack Campbell, the protagonist of this movie.  I'm George, not Jack.  Remember that.

Jack Campbell is coping
with the life he could have had.
If nothing else, The Family Man is an opposite of It's a Wonderful Life.  Where George Bailey had to almost lose his life to understand how to be grateful for what he had, Jack Campbell had to see what kind of life he could have had so that he could see that there was more to life than what he already had.  The first is about gratitude, the second is about regret.  I say that I am George because I haven't screwed it up yet and I can still look at my life and be grateful for what I have.  I am not Jack and I an so thankful that I am not - I haven't gone someplace or done something or made some large, seemingly irreversible choice that I actually regret.  It's a Wonderful Life makes me grateful for what I have, and The Family Man makes me grateful that I have not yet made a really big mistake.


I can tell you how I have avoided making a big mistake.  I don't remember consciously making my first covenant with God at the age of eight when I was baptized and when servants of God laid their hands on my head and gave me the supernal gift of the Holy Ghost, but I am grateful every day that those things happened to me.  It is the constant companionship of the Holy Ghost that I enjoy, courtesy of a kind and loving Heavenly Father, that I have been able to make the right decisions in my life.

Let me give you an example.

I am married to the most wonderful woman in the world, as far as I am concerned.  If I could only say one thing about Lisa, it would be that she helps me be my best self.  She (somewhat) patiently helps me to see what I should be doing and waits for me to figure things out, especially the important things.  She is my best friend, my deepest confidant, and my perfect compliment.  Every time I put her happiness ahead of my own, I have always been thankful for the outcome.  I love her with all my heart and my greatest desire is to be her husband not just for this life, but for all eternity.  I am so grateful that I asked her to marry me, that she said "yes", and that we made another covenant with God, in his holy temple, that we would do whatever it took to be together forever.

The Holy Ghost has been a daily participant in my life, as much as I can make him so, and that relationship has helped me see over the years how wonderful my life with Lisa has been and can continue to be.  Of course, I could say things about how grateful I am for my children and my parents as well, but I think this is enough to show you that I don't regret a thing (so far).

If you want to know more about covenants that you can make with God, visit http://www.mormon.org.  You can live the regret-free life starting today!

Oh, coincidently, The Family Man had a weird ending that really takes away from the experience, but if you can see past that, it is a wonderful movie that can change your life for the better!