I have a hyper-tuned intuition about the essential nature of people. I sense things; I’m innately observant without realizing it. This gift comes into play during my interactions with folks in my day-to-day life, which guides my relationships and aids me immeasurably in my job as a certified Home Health Aid for the elderly. Unfortunately, this gift also rears its somewhat bothersome head while watching movies with my family. As soon as the action commences, I’ve got my physical (and spiritual) eyes peeled for character traits, facial expressions, and speech that will shed a faint glimmer on things to come. If someone were to ask me (after watching a movie) what color of hat a particular character was wearing, or challenge me to describe the setting, I’d most likely be at a loss. However, ask me early on about the characters themselves – their personality traits, and who the “bad guy is,” and how the plot is going to play out, and I’ll gladly ruin the movie for you. I can usually figure out the “hidden story” of a movie within the first twenty minutes (without reading the back of the DVD case!), or name the murderer in a detective story by the end of the fourth chapter. It’s just an annoying gift I have. My husband’s standard line is, “Okay, tell me what’s going to happen. You wrote the script!” I think it’s a combination of the inherent love I have for people, combined with a highly sensitive connection to the guidance of the Holy Spirit, topped off with my attraction to the thrill that comes from solving a difficult puzzle.
Granted, a lot of movies are not that challenging to figure out. That’s why I prefer tales spun with large doses of mystery and intrigue (but, relatively light on the gore, gunfire, and utter destruction). Take, for example, the movies of M. Night Shyamalan, often very complex, perplexing story lines. I relish the challenge presented to me in his movies! They are a tasty test for my perceptive prowess. I had the mystery of the plot line in “The Village” essentially figured out within the first 20 minutes. It was a fairly elaborate tale, so I didn’t have all of the pieces of the puzzle until the very end, but I had worked out enough of the deception to blow my husband’s mind. And, speaking of mind, how about that amazing movie, “A Beautiful Mind.” I dove into that movie knowing nothing about the back-story, and still managed to figure out some pretty key elements of that drama that spoke volumes about the inner truth of that amazing narrative.
Years ago, when the kids had reached the age when they were allowed to watch more adult-themed films with us, I used to blurt out my insights regarding characters and plot lines. The family started to tire of my gift. They saw it as a heavy rain upon their picture-viewing parade. It finally came to a breaking point, and my plot premonitions were pink-slipped. I had to keep all of my thoughts to myself. It was torturous. I survived by reading murder mysteries.
I can’t even remember all of the mystery series I have scarfed down over the past 15 years or so. However, I can say, with full confidence, if the stories had anything to do with cats, I’ve read them – the “Cat Who” mysteries by Lillian Jackson Braun, most of Rita Mae Brown’s series, the “Fat Cat” collection, etc. (although, I’ve just noticed, by researching this post, that there a couple of new authors in the cat sleuthing genre that I was unaware of, so my intuition is guaranteed a good work-out for months to come!) I’ve also dipped my toes in the crime solving tales of Agatha Christie, Alexander McCall Smith, Dorothy Sayers, and G. K. Chesterton, just to name a few. Right now, I am spending a little time with Mrs. Jeffries, the main character in a series of “Victorian” murder mysteries. (I must admit, these stories are not really all that great, but I needed some PG-rated library books that were readily available in LARGE PRINT, so I can read while walking on the treadmill!) At any rate, solving these kinds of crimes within the first half of the book was a good way to keep my people/observation skills honed, since I was banned from such activity in movie-watching for so long.
Which brings me back to my living room, and the mysterious characters on the TV screen just begging for my armchair analysis . Up until recently, I have had to satisfy myself with saying, while the end credits were rolling, “I knew that was going to happen/he was the bad guy/these people were being set up” (or, whatever). To those comments, someone would always respond, “No you didn’t! You’re just saying that now that the movie is over.” Since we are practically empty-nesters now (except for that 21-year-old still residing on the premises), I am going back to making my predictions out loud again. I will try hard to keep back essential information that will ruin the end of the movie, but I am going to defend my gift of insight by letting people know that I have got some sneaky plot elements figured out! If necessary, I will write the information down and put it in an envelope, which will be kept in the middle of the living room floor in plain view of everyone. It will be sorta’ like a real-life version of the Clue game (minus the cute little murder weapons and Colonel Mustard!). You’re welcome to join us anytime, for motion pictures, popcorn, and plot previsions!
grandma's coffee soup 