I initially found two of the tasks assigned by Julia Cameron in week 7 to be a bit strange. As I went about answering her questions, my mind returned to the busy work that my teachers made us do in grade school (I once remember having to complete a word search as part of a science test in grade 10). I sat down with a ho hum attitude, feeling like I may have been wasting my time a little bit.
Here was the first question:
“Quickly list five favourite films. Do you see any common denominators among them? Are they romances, adventures, period pieces, political dramas, family epics, thrillers.”
Okay. My mind jumped between childhood and the present. I have seen so many movies in my lifetime. I realized, only after settling on four out of five of my films, that the key word in that question was “quickly.” I was mistakenly trying to find my ALL TIME favourite movies, but if you look at the question again, it actually only says “list five favourite films.” Sort of non-chalent in its request, and yet I made a big deal out of it. Since I still had one film left to name, I gave myself permission to let go of the desire to be perfect (and also the desire to find the answer that I thought others would agree with) and suddenly “Labyrinth” came out of my finger tips. I almost erased it, but then I stopped myself. Yes, David Bowie’s Labyrinth is probably one of the most made fun of movies ever, but as a child (after watching this film) my best friend and I used to spend hours on her driveway drawing detailed labyrinths out of chalk and then letting these one dimensional chalk lines to grow into a maze that would keep us preoccupied for hours. It doesn’t matter what the rest of the world thinks. This is one of my favourite movies because of the memory that I’ve attached to it. Ratings and public opinion has nothing to do with it.
Oh, by the way… if you’re curious, here are
my five favourite films:
- Matilda
- A Beautiful Mind
- Ruby Sparks
- Black Swan
- David Bowie’s Labryinth
Julia Cameron then asks you to step back and look for a theme in your answers. It didn’t take me long to realize that all 5 of my movies have a little bit of MAGIC in them.
The second question was:
“Name your favourite topics to read about: comparative religion, movies, ESP, physics, rags-to-riches, betrayal, love triangles, scientific breakthroughs, sports.”
Having learned from my mistakes, I made sure to answer this one quickly. Here are my answers:
My 5 Favourite Topics to Read About
- The Brain
- Historical Fiction – specifically fictions surrounding WWII
- Positivity and the Law of Attraction
- Long narrative biography style novels. Especially ones which follow a strong intellectual female protagonists (or antagonist)
- Acting
There are many more topics that I could add, but these were the first five to jump into my head. What I mean by “long narrative biography style novels” are novels that don’t really have your traditional story arch, but are more focused on following a life. Some of my favourite examples are “Gone with the Wind,” “Of Human Bondage,” and “Little Women.”
This second question was simpler for me to answer – perhaps because I didn’t have to narrow my answer down to specifics, or perhaps because I am more confident in my relationship to books. The book nerd is sort of a part of my identity.
What did I learn from this exercise?
A while back I went to go to see a movie in a theatre all by myself. I realized, while sitting there, that I have a tendency to look at my companion to affirm my emotional response to the film. I had a similar experience while answering this question. Although Julia Cameron is asking for your own personal opinion, I have a tendency to take into the account what I believe is the personal opinion of the wider population, and a desire to shift my preferences to align with the preferences of others. I found this more with the first question, and less with the second.
So, again, despite my initial hesitation this exercise taught me something important. It reminded me of my individuality, and that it’s okay to have an opinion. That you are entitled to your opinion. That your opinion had been drawn from a life-time of experiences, and that squashing your opinion is like squashing and discounting your life. Maybe I’m breathing more into this than it deserves… but then what’s your experience in answering these questions?
Are you able to answer them truthfully and honestly just for yourself, or are you bringing the opinions of others into the mix as well?