Last night the boys were out and Byron and I were home with Heather and her best buddy, Sianna. After dinner, I picked up my book and joined Byron on the front porch by the gas burning heater in the glow of the lanterns. It was peaceful to sit there reading.
But through the window I could see the girls, 9& 10, dancing in the living room.
As previously mentioned, we just saw the new Narnia film. The girls had the soundtrack playing and they were dressed in long skirts with their hair flowing out from beneath wreath crowns on their heads.
Through the glass, I could see that their dancing was not like the party kind of dancing that we had done the night before at a friend's 50 birthday celebration. There we had giggled together, a mom and her 4 kids, dancing to the band with a bunch of other moms and teens and even a few of the men (!)
No, Heather and Sianna were dancing with imaginary swords in their hands, looking graceful and lovely and strong.
I was so taken with the scene, but I didn't want to disturb it so I didn't get up and let them see me watching closely. I simply let them do their Narnian dance in their princess clothes with the somber faces and their regal steps.
It's interesting, in Prince Caspian (the book) Susan does not go to battle. In the film, she does. I read that they felt this vision of women fit better with Lewis' view of women after he came to know and love Joy Davidman Gresham. The book was written before his relationship with Joy and scholars feel that his view of women grew and changed through the friendship and brief marriage with her.
All I know is that I was moved to see these little girls dressed so finely and fight-dancing with such beauty and strength. I wanted to get up and cheer them on, to tell them not to lose this feeling that they can be fully feminine and fully bold and brave and strong.
But I didn't want to shatter the scene. They didn't need a pep talk. They seemed to already know what they needed to know.
I went back to my reading, encouraged by the little girls and their big vision of themselves.
4 comments:
ah, lovely. may it ever be so, and with increasing measure.
Dance on little girls!! May our beautiful ladies freely dance out their brave, delicate, daring and brilliant hearts and minds all over the place! :)
That's so beautiful!!
Have you seen Shadowlands? It's a movie about C.S. Lewis and Joy Gresham. It's a good movie in which Anthony Hopkins plays Lewis.
What a beautiful moment to witness! It will be a great thing for her to read about someday!
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