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Creating Bridges: The Spiritual & Philosophical :
The BUT Doctor
Healing America's Real Crack Problem One Person at a Time
The Hollywood BUT Doctor Goes to the Movies
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by Eddie Conner |
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Last night, I sat down to watch what I thought was a feel-good movie and man, was I surprised! None of my friends had told me about the ending of Million Dollar Baby and the movie continued to take twist and turns that I hadn’t expected. What I thought was an uplifting story turned out to be one of the most thought provoking movies that I’ve seen in years.
Have you ever witnessed something that really made you think, to truly explore your own life and feelings? Well, this movie did that for me. Though this movie has a powerful resilience and rich heart it evokes so many questions that it leaves your head spinning! I asked myself,, “Why do bad things happen to good people?” and “How come the jerks in life walk away free and the hard working people get screwed to the wall?” I was left with that familiar refrain, life sometimes isn’t fair. Still, it was a movie, right?
Two time Oscar winner Hilary Swank portrayed the resilient Maggie, a thirty-something woman from the “wrong side” of the tracks who had nothing more than a desire to feel good. The only thing that made Maggie feel excited and hopeful about her life was her boxing.
Maggie possessed something that a lot of us don’t, a determined drive and motivation from her inner spirit to get herself and her family into a life that was better than they had ever known. Failure was not an option. Her spirit, drive and desire was both uplifting and infectious, finally softening crusty trainer Frankie Dunn, played by Clint Eastwood.
At first, Frankie wouldn’t have anything to do with “a girl” boxer. His thoughts on the subject were made painfully clear to Maggie when Frankie point-blank says, “I don’t train girls.” His confidant resolve was enough to make anyone rethink their goal, not Maggie, instead she bought a six month membership to Frankie’s gym. She showed up early everyday in this foreign territory to work the bag and she was the last one to leave the gym each night. When she wasn’t at the gym training and pulling Frankie into her hypnotic web she was practicing her moves while waiting tables, running on the beach or working out. She literally ate, slept and lived her craft. Her dream became a bold reality in her mind, solar plexus and gut before she ever showed proof that she could achieve her goal
Of course this movie is layered with other story lines keeping audiences on the edge of their seats, I imagine that everyone watching found at least one character to relate to.
Powerful, stunning actor Morgan Freeman who plays Scrap, the gym’s caretaker and Frankie’s counterpart and guide. Freeman narrated this complex film with firm honesty as his character walked Maggie into Frankie’s tutelage, keeping the complex balance solid between the two characters.
For me it is Scrap’s disposition and Maggie’s desire that drives the film. I was struck to the core by Maggie’s strong perspective. She didn’t see a negative without also seeing a solution. She had a brilliant balance between her real world attitude as a waitress living on the tips she made after narrowly escaping the crushing poverty and white-trash mindset of her family, while at the same time she envisioned, lived, breathed and expected her dream to become a reality.
When she was at work, she didn’t complain that she wasn’t at the gym and when she was at the gym she didn’t complain about not getting enough sleep. She lived in the present moment in her life and expected multiple miracles at any given time. She genuinely appreciated each challenge that came her way because she knew that, that moment would build her next platform to success.
When Maggie pulled herself out of her poverty mindset, she bought her ungrateful momma and siblings a new home so they could move out of the trailer park. Maggie’s generous gift was met by lo-frequency arguments, negativity and even snickering from her family. When Maggie and Frankie took her family to the new house to surprise them, her momma was more concerned and outspoken about whether or not the welfare checks would be stopped and called Maggie stupid for not having the commonsense that God gave her, instructing her to find a man and stop boxing because boxing wouldn’t amount to anything useful.
What would have broken most people’s hearts made Maggie determined and more focused than ever. The negativity melted away as she found solace by hitting the gym and working toward her dream. A dream that lead to her flawless record of knocking out her opponents, often in the first round of the competition. Her determination and reputation took her from saving spare change and sneaking table scraps while waiting tables to the countless fans cheering her name as she achieved world renowned success in North America and abroad.
During all of this Maggie stayed true to her inner voice. A voice that she acknowledged with a simple wisdom that moved mountains and opened Frankie’s heart and mind. She was a good kid who followed the rules, worked hard and fought fair. She lived these ethics and principles daily, despite her surroundings. Finally, it seemed the whole world was rooting for Maggie who was on her way to the top and beating the British Heavyweight Champion of the World in Las Vegas during her biggest match to date.
The British fighter had a reputation for fighting unfairly. A former prostitute pulled off the streets, turned boxer she was famous for her cheap, nasty shots and biting hatred. Maggie had the lead and had turned the match around as the referee rang the bell and ended the third round of the match. Stunned and fearful of losing the fight, and her title, the champion sucker-punched unsuspecting Maggie in the side of the face knocking her hard onto the wooden stool that Frankie sat out for Maggie after the bell rang. She landed unconscious, ringing her neck on the stool and blacking out.
If you haven’t seen the movie and you plan to, you may want to save the rest of this article until afterward, I don’t want to ruin your movie watching pleasure. At least the movie has been out for awhile now, so I feel fairly safe proceeding.
She woke up in the hospital paralyzed from the neck down. A breathing machine kept air in her lungs because her body couldn’t breath on its own. Over the weeks and months her body developed skin ulcers and bed sores. From the lack of circulation she lost a leg. And the first, and only time Maggie’s family came to visit her in the hospital they brought an attorney with them. Maggie’s momma, sister and brother worked hard to convince her to sign the paperwork so they would be financially set for life. Maggie almost signed the document until she ask her momma if she had seen the fight on television.
Her momma snapped “Honey you know how I feel about that.” Sincerely, Maggie said, “I did pretty good momma.” And without missing a beat her momma barked back, “You lost Maggie! It ain’t your fault the way I heard it, BUT you lost.”
For an instant the hurt washed over Maggie’s face and paralyzed body. Her mom put an ink pen in Maggie’s mouth so she could legally sign “her mark” giving her momma the power of attorney.
People die everyday without having their time in the spot light or achieving their dreams. More often than not people leave this planet simply moving through the motions of survival without a passion to hold in their heart of hearts. One of my favorite lines in the movie is when Scrap is tenderly guiding Frankie and he says, “I believe Maggie’s last thought will be ‘I think I did alright.’”
How many of us can say that today? This movie brought up a ton of amazing questions for me. Am I living each day to the fullest? Am I stepping outside of my familiar comfort zones and pursuing my dreams with all I’ve got or am I living a BUT-tradicted® life? What is so important to me that I’d rather die than be without it? And, if I wasn’t doing this thing that I love, what else would I be doing?
Maggie teaches us to embrace life to the fullest Her advice would be: follow your heart, make sacrifices as needed, it’s worth it, push hard past what we did and knew yesterday and build a new life on what we do want and do know today.
Scrap is the quiet, contemplative observer that makes a best friend and brilliant guide in life. Do you have a “Scrap,” in your life? If so, he or she probably knows what you are going through before you even realize it. He will ask the right questions at the perfect time to help you recognize where you are, how you feel, what you want and what you need to do to get there. That’s a friendship to treasure.
Frankie, began the story shut off, guarding his heart so that he would not feel; that way he’d never get hurt. However, at our core we all want love and he sees something in Maggie that he admires, maybe something that reminds him of himself, and slowly he begins to open his heart. Despite his unique, masculine manner, we know that he truly cares.
I believe that all of us have at least a Maggie, a Scrap or a Frankie inside of us. And if we’re lucky, we have them all. I want to believe that I have the decisive goal oriented Maggie that pursues her dreams in spite of her back ground. That I have the ability to be quiet and observe the world around me through unconditional, wise eyes like Scrap while possessing the desire to love again even if it means getting hurt as did Frankie.
At first I left the movie with a sense of sadness and after a few moments I realized the huge gifts in this timeless treasure. I have made a commitment to myself to carry the positive aspects of each of these characters in my heart and mind. I invite you to do the same.
On a side note, the following quote appears on a big poster on the wall in Frankie’s gym. When Maggie is working the bag we see this quote taped on the wall behind her. I feel that it sums up Maggie’s perception of what a true winner is.
“Winners are simply willing to do what losers won’t.”
This is Eddie Conner, the Hollywood BUT Doctor signing off until next month. If you’re interested in information about Million Dollar Baby please go to the official site at http://milliondollarbabymovie.warnerbros.com/home.html for more details. |
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Eddie Conner,
Author & Soul Intuitive
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Eddie Conner has achieved international acclaim as a Soul Intuitive, humorist, speaker and the author of The Big BUT Syndrome™.
To date Eddie has shared his metaphysical teachings on thousands of radio stations in the U.S. and is currently creating a show for national television syndication. Eddie is a contributing writer for The Power Agent and The Caster Magazines in Los Angeles.
He's the founder of the Spirit Light Expo ~ Merging Movies, Magic & Metaphysics™ and conducts tours to Peru and the Far East. Eddie and his teeny weenie BUT live in Los Angeles, California.
Soul Awareness with Eddie Conner (818) 734-9392
www.EddieConner.com
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