Sometimes, You Just Have to Watch Spider-Man

There are many wonders of the traumatized brain, and one of them is the state of hypervigilance. If we have been through trauma before, particularly in childhood, our brains often remain trained to respond to the faintest whiff of crisis. We become tightly wound or sensitive or many other terms that have become pejorative to describe being human. 

There is a great amount of research on what screen time does to the human brain, but less talk about what it does for the human brain. Anxious people tend to watch the same shows over and over again, perhaps because it provides occupying respite for an overactive imagination that tends to skew toward worry or fear. Parents of active children know that screen time can keep almost any kid (and many adults) quiet for hours at a stretch - even though experts agree, it really shouldn’t be used that way. 

I am a great lover of movies, and I cherish a particular kind. Marvel movies, monster movies, natural disaster movies, movies that entertain with clever quips, roaring beasts, and explosions. If I have to think too hard, I’m out. I want to be entertained (feel free to read that with dramatic flair)… because I want to be occupied. 

I watched a lot of Spider-Man movies yesterday. A weird amount. I did it as an homage to a lost dream while mulling over a new one. My brain is so hyperactive I can do all of that at once, while also processing a movie in real time. Sure, sometimes I have to rewind. Sure, it feels a little useless to spend that much time in front of a television. The American Dream in me is always telling me to get off my BLEEP and make something happen in the name of a future built entirely on my own. You know - independence, bootstraps, and all that. The Spider-Man films, and all hero movies, actually, do a really good job of reinforcing the message that we have to sacrifice our loved ones in the name of our life’s mission which is…

BULLLLLLLLLLLBLEEEEEEP

If there is one thing I have to say about the toxicity of our culture, it’s the message that emotions don’t matter or that relationships need to be (or even can be) separate from our work, that the hero must do his (or occasionally, her) work all alone. There’s a reason why people are ill with stress and the manifestations of it. We have decoupled families, partnerships, community from the American Dream, pretending like business and enterprise are completed in some sort of vacuum, when in reality it takes people and relationships of all kinds to get work done, to endure it, or even to thrive while doing it. 

What does this have to do with faith and prayer? Not much, maybe. It may just be an observation about self-care. We don’t have to be perfect or working our BLEEPS off toward our dreams all the time in order for them to come to fruition. In fact, it’s better if we take some time to enjoy life, say our prayers, and have faith that Good (or God) is working with us on our dreams.

There will always be days when we need to rest, recover, restore, and the best part is, Good never rests. God never sleeps. Having faith is knowing if we’re focused on what we want and saying our prayers, Good (or God) is always working in a favor, which means we don’t have to. We are allowed to rest, just like we are allowed to have faith.

There will be some days when we just have to rest, having faith that Good (or God) is working for us and with us. Sometimes I wish Spider-Man knew that he isn’t alone and he doesn’t have to do everything all on his own either.