Happy 10th Anniversary The Lizzie Bennet Diaries!

It’s been ten years since Lizzie Bennet graced the screen with her snarky commentary and life lessons. I remember following the characters on tumblr and drawing fashion inspiration from both Jane and Lizzie Bennet. This web series was one of its kind. And Ashley Clemments is even doing a look back on the whole series. If you love modern day adaptions, lit stories and creative spunk, watch this series on YouTube. If you have already seen it, have fun reliving the memorable moments and reminiscing with the cast. 

Just an update

 I haven’t been on my blog for a little while. With the pandemic and other personal events, my writing was on the back burner, but I’m bringing my blog back and going back to my creative, goofy self. 

Wonder Woman 1984: A Movie Review

 Wonder Woman was an amazing movie. This sequel highlighted similar themes to the first movie, but it also brought an interesting challenge to Diana. 

Raised as a warrior, Diana valued strength and victory above all things, but she was impatient to achieve them. This sets up the movie as the inner and outer conflict. 

Her perspective is very different from Barbara’s perspective of the world as a woman during 1984. While Barbara envies Diana’s life, Diana is longing for the past. When an opportunity to get what they want arises, the way Diana and Barbara react is very different, but Maxwell Lord has been searching for that opportunity for a long time. Once wishes are granted, terrible prices must be paid in return, and each character has an important choice to make. 

I really liked the dynamic between Diana and Steve in this movie. While Wonder Woman had Steve guiding Diana through the world, this movie has Diana teaching Steve about all the changes that the world has gone through. It was an added bonus that the places filmed in DC were places that I had been to. 

Another interesting dynamic was between Diana and Barbara. While they had much in common at the beginning of the film, their choices changed that entirely. 

Wonder Woman 1984 asks a question about wishes and value. I think it was worth watching. 

A Year of Reflection

 Two years actually. Most people will say that 2020 was a very tough year. I agree. But I’m humble enough to admit I had two tough years with many lessons. 

Maybe I’ll add these lessons in my stories and share them in the future. For now, I’ll just say it’s been quite a journey. 

I’m optimistic, so I still have hope for the future, and I have worked hard on my novel Starlight to make it ready to publish. But I’ve also learned that publishing a novel is just one thing, and yes it’s still an important thing, and I want the book to be at it’s best when it gets published. But there are many other things I want to experience. 

2020 taught me a lot about resilience. And I’m optimistic that 2021 will bring positive opportunities. 

Perspective and Mentoring

It’s been a while since I blogged, but what I’ve been doing in the meantime is very important. Self care, connecting with people who understand what I’m going through, and creating a work book for people who may need a guide to help them with a similar situation.
I’ve been speaking with people who have Autistic siblings, and talking with people from around the world of various ages about what they are going through or have gone through. We all agreed that a guide would help. We’ve been collaborating on how to handle extremely stressful situations, ask for help when we need it and to allow ourselves to be who we are.
This guide would be about a variety of situations and the tools needed to understand it.
Here’s the thing, and it’s still true today. The siblings of people with autism are not given the support they need to deal with the situations that are extremely important, often repetitive and ignored by many psychologists. This can lead to intense consequences down the line.
It’s hard to share the tough stuff, but I’m finding it helpful. We’re all able to talk about some difficult topics that are not easy to discuss with parents, teachers, even psychologists and the most important thing: allow ourselves to feel what we feel about it. Including whether or not we feel safe or supported.
This guide we’re working on is not just about the tough stuff. It’s also about the skills, talents and lessons we’ve learned from our experiences. We’re even discussing about a website or programs for people who need it.
There arent a lot of resources out there, so I thought it would be important to create one.
Siblings are the focus of the workbook, but it’s not about secluding them from the family. Isolation is part of the problem. The more people I talked to, the more I heard the same troubles, patterns and behaviors I experienced, and the more we brainstormed on what could help.
I’m posting this for two reasons.
One: It’s an update.
Two: To get the info out there. If you have other resources to offer, feel free to comment.

Yes, I’m still writing, editing my novels and I’m taking breaks, so it’s not a sprint. But it’s a step, and a big one.
Several people I talked to about this say it’s a great idea. It adds a new perspective to the situation and may lead to other resources in the future.

Rapunzel, Elsa and Emma Swan

This is a fascinating video that shows the connection between Elsa and Rapunzel. They’re both more powerful than they are aware of, extremely creative and they create from the heart. They take their circumstances and create something beautiful from them. This is the lesson Emma Swan learns when her powers get out of control and she doesn’t want to hurt the people she cares for. Elsa teaches Emma a very important lesson, and once she embraces who she is, Emma is able to create from her heart. I’m writing a similar story with my own elements thrown in, and I’ve been on quite the journey myself, But I wanted to post this today because I’m going to create online again. I’ve been writing, and for awhile I lost the confidence to post. This is for obvious reasons to the people who knew what I went through for awhile. But I’m back, I’ve finally gained the courage to tell my story, in the hopes to help others who understand and need guidance through the confusion and chaos in their lives. I’m posting these stories because they are dear to me, and now I’m ready to write my own.

A Wrinkle In Time- Spoilers Galore

This will not be a spoiler free review. There is no way in the world I could write one. Meg’s journey in this story is also mine. Every obstacle she faces, and the final battle that she must confront is the exact story that I have lived. 

Meg Murry is a character after my own heart. She’s insecure and cynical, but she is also loyal and brave. And smart. Incredibly smart. Using the laws of physics and her own inner strength, Meg braves the journey to find her father alongside her brother Charles Wallace, and the boy next door Calvin with the astral travelers Mrs Who, Mrs Which and Mrs Whatsit. 

Her character growth makes this film, and that’s why it spoke to me. 

Before Meg begins her journey, Mrs Who gives her an important quote. “ The wound is the place where the light enters you.” - Rumi. 

Meg must face her own faults to battle the darkness. She doesn’t travel well, while everyone else is just fine. She is closed off to her own brilliance and what makes her special. 

Her first real test in the film is trusting The Happy Medium, who allows her to find the balance within to open her heart to her father in order to find him. 

She finds a memory, the memory of the exact moment she last saw her father, before he disappeared. That memory leads her to Camaztoz, the evil planet where her father is trapped. A planet run by an evil mind known as the IT. 

As the planet changes into obstacle after obstacle, Meg and Calvin are separated from Charles Wallace. And after a harsh battle with the darkness, Calvin gives Meg one of the best lines that any insecure person could be given, “You don’t know how incredible you are.” 

After they find Charles Wallace, they face a strange encounter with a red eyed man who claims to know Meg’s father. Calvin and Charles trust him, but Meg is not so sure. She listens to her instinct and focuses on her goal. 

They had traveled to  Camaztoz, to find her father, but the IT wants something too, Charles Wallace and his brilliant mind. 

Meg watches her brother fall to darkness and enters a realm where the path is no longer visible. Still, she is determined to find her father, and uses her will, and the gift of the unseen (given by Mrs. Who) to climb the impossible staircase leading to her father. 

When she finds him, she finally lets herself cry, allowing all the grief to wash away, but the battle isn’t over. The IT has her brother, Charles Wallace, and only Meg can save him. 

While her father and Calvin manage to get away, Meg refuses to go with them. She would never leave her brother. 

I will not lie, the final battle in this version of the story is brutal. The IT speaks harsh words through Charles Wallace, and tosses Meg like a rag doll. 

But Meg is determined to save her brother. 

What does she have that the IT doesn’t? What can she do to save her brother?

She loves him. 

As the IT continues to use her brother against her, Meg screams at him, “You love me Charles Wallace, and I deserve to be loved!” 

It is that declaration that brings her brother back, and destroys the IT entirely. Charles rushes to his sister as the evil mind bursts into light. 

Mrs. Who, Mrs Which and Mrs Whatsit return, and they congratulate Meg on her success. She knows her own brilliance now, and she is able to lead them with no pain. She has become a warrior. 

She returns home, and brings her father to her mother, and thanks Calvin for taking the journey with her. 

 As she watches the happy scene of her family reunited she whispers, “Thank you” to the universe. 

So how did I react to this story? With my entire heart. 

I have been fighting a battle with darkness for a long time. My brother’s Autism.

We all have fights with siblings, and we get angry at them. We tell them that they hurt us. Autistic siblings don’t always understand this, and that has been a struggle for me my whole life. Meltdowns, harsh words and lack of empathy. 

Confused and lost, I shut myself away from others. 

I was like Meg, closed off, sad and angry. And yes, I was bullied like Meg was too. 

So many kids are mistreated in school, and that can scar them for life. I hope they all draw inspiration from Meg in this film. 

There are times when I must remember, the Autism is not my brother. He doesn’t always understand. And yes, I love him. I love him deeply, and I would never leave him behind. But I have a right to speak up for myself too. 

I was with Meg on that battlefield screaming those words, and I left the movie theatre with a newfound strength. I had become a warrior.  

The Murrys are a wonderful family, and not without their faults. But faults can save us. Meg’s faults saved her. 

While the IT told her all that was wrong with her, Meg proudly stated that she was all that and more. 

The Murrys all possess a powerful love for each other that transcends time and space. Love is the frequency that binds them together, no matter where they are. 

My family and I have been told how amazing it is that we stick together. We do because we have that love. 

There is no book on Autism, and there is no direct type of Autism. It is still a mystery, but that mystery is just a part of my family and my life. 

We all have the ability to love beyond faults. We all have the ability to see beyond labels.  

I don’t care what the critics say about this movie. I thought it was beautiful. The diverse cast was amazing and most importantly, the message hit home. 

It’s all about the power of love, and how it reaches no matter where you are. It’s universal and beautiful. Love can overcome anything. 

I could rate this movie, but I have a personal bias that ties me to it. 

All I can do, is look up at the stars, and whisper “Thank you” to the universe.