84, Charing Cross Road

I cannot tell you how many times I have seen 84, Charing Cross Road, nor do I ever tire of it. The acting is superb (Anne Bancroft, Anthony Hopkins, Dame Judi Dench), and the story draws me in like a sponge…and is a true story.

Here’s the gist: Helene Hanff, a writer in New York, pre-WWII, goes in search of hard-to-find volumes by writing to a second-hand bookstore in England—at 84 Charing Cross Road. Frank is the manager of the store and, over twenty years of mail orders and written discourse, he and Helene grow to be very close, that friendship circle including his staff as well. As you watch this movie, you watch this little group of friends through the war and you see the events of their lives unfold through letters back and forth across the Atlantic. And the movie itself is so very stylish. Here's a taste:



If you are looking for spy action and car chases, skip this. But if you want a true, wonderful story with deep character development and a story about the best kind of friendship, you will want to brew some tea and sit down to this movie.

As I sat watching it this time, marveling at the long-distance relationship that developed between the two main characters, I could not help but think of you, my friends in the blogosphere. It was amazing when the next day I visited Willow Manor and found that she had watched the same showing (again) and had been sitting there thinking of blogging as well.

In the case of Helene and Frank, they never met personally. And, yet, they became the closest of friends. Each was dear to the other, and it is a fascinatingprogression of the movie to see that relationship deepen and the longing each had to actually be in the presence of the other. Never realized.

There is one (for me) pivotal scene, where Helene reads from John Donne of our connection with one another

All mankind is of one author, and is one volume; when one man dies, one chapter is not torn out of the book, but translated into a better language; and every chapter must be so translated. God employs several translators; some pieces are translated by age, some by sickness, some by war, some by justice; but God's hand is in every translation, and His hand shall bind up all our scattered leaves again for that library where every book shall lie open to another.

I believe Willow Manor is right; blogging is the pen pal method of today. It is possible to come to know people with whom you have never had the pleasure of keeping company. And, it’s funny, but after reflecting, I think my blog friends may see my “essence” even more clearly than my nearer friends do. When I write my posts, there is the comfort of an air of anonymity. I am not obsessed with keeping my identity secret, but I do write at large under the pseudonym, “C.” This gives me a little more leash and, I believe, it gives my readers insight into who I really am.

I have thought in the past that blogging is a method of re-inventing myself. On my blog, I can hone the qualities I want to present and just not mention those other irritating parts of me that might be evident to those who sit in the same room. But I have come to think that, rather than re-invention, what I feel when posting is a certain freedom. It’s really “me set free,” rather than a different me.

And this ramble is to say this: I do feel connected with you. I do feel that there are those of you whom I “know” but have never met. There are some of you who, when I read one of your posts, I think, “Yes, that sounds just like ________!” And this about people whom I have never met. Some of you live on the other side of the globe (what a blessing to have that connection!!) and it is not likely I will ever meet you personally. But meet you I have.

The one time I have actually met with a blogger friend, Add Humor and Faith..., she was exactly as V and I had grown to know her. It just bolsters me in my belief that the connection of friendship need not be physical, but can be nurtured long distance. And what a blessing to be able to connect in the way we do on the internet.

Go watch 84 Charing Cross Road. See if it doesn’t remind you of “us” bloggers!

C: The Prizewinner of Defiance Ohio: How My Mother Raised 10 Kids on 25 Words or Less.

Don’t you love based-on-fact stories of victory? This is one of my very favorite movies. Why it is that more people don't know about it is beyond me. I have yet to recommend this movie, starring Julianne Moore and Woody Harrelson, to someone who has already seen it. It is based on a memoir written by Terry Ryan about her mother Evelyn. Growing up in Eisenhower-era middle-America, author Terry was one of ten—yes, ten!—of Evelyn’s children.

What you see in this movie is Evelyn as the glue of the family. Woody Harrelson is soooo convincing as the volatile, alcoholic father who spends his family’s milk money on booze. There is Evelyn, at home managing this brood, and steering deftly around her husband’s brokenness to bring her family through. Her only means was contesting. She was a wildly successful jingle-writer, and it literally kept a roof over her family’s head.

One of my favorite lines? When the clothes washer and dryer she just won were delivered, she gleefully exclaimed, “No more boiling diapers on the stove!!” Egads!

I will warn that I have had people watch this movie and say it was a “downer.” I just cannot see this perspective. The movie depicts hard things: Dad's alcohol abuse, his immaturity and recklessness, the fear his children felt of his rage, and his chagrin over Evelyn’s success as a contester even though he profited from it. (Must never let the little woman think she’s anything special….). But in the end I see it as a story of triumph.

Ultimately, Evelyn triumphed in her home and life, just like she did in all those contests. The town in which this family grew up was, indeed, “Defiance, Ohio.” I think that name was no accident for Evelyn, for she stood in absolute defiance of her situation.

But Evelyn’s defiance was not of her husband or her circumstances. It was a defiance that was fiercely protective of her entire family, including that husband whom many of us would have kicked to the curb. She is shown as a determined, loyal and loving mother. Her children never, never doubted her love and determination for them. And even her husband would let slip his total dependence on this strong woman. There is one scene where the landlord has visited the home to advise that the family must move in two weeks. Naturally, the children are disturbed and meet Dad at the driveway when he comes home from work. They give him the news of the impending move and express their worry, to which he replies, “Don’t worry. Mother will figure something out.” Yes, always Mother…

I love stories of strong women, especially in an era when society did nothing to promote independence and strength in women. It was not Evelyn’s ambition that drove her, but her love of her family. I found it absolutely uplifting. And, furthermore, when Evelyn finally gets to meet with her contesting community--other bright women finding their way out of bondage through contesting--I am so reminded of my blogging community!

I’ve not read the book, but it is on my short list.

Here's a trailer for just a taste:

The acting is superb. The story is triumphant--and TRUE! What more could you ask for? If you take the time to watch this movie, be sure to wait at the end credits when you will be told what happens in adulthood to each and every one of Evelyn’s ten children. Believe me, they—each and every one—did her proud!! I would have expected nothing else. C