I have not watched the documentary, so perhaps I shouldn't respond. (I did, however, fast forward just now to the scene in the end that you refer to in your post.) I just want to say that I don't understand your take on this. Celine is her own boss. She knows what she's doing. She's in charge of her life and her decisions. She is quite young and has children to raise. She shows defiance against a disease that is trying to stop her from living her life. She is saying, no way am I going to give up. She knows her limitations, she knows she has to take care of herself. She's done that for years.And she is surrounded by people who care about her. I don't see her as overly pushing herself when it comes to her disease. I see her as being life-affirming, not ready to quit until she just can't do it anymore. I applaud that in her. I have a friend who recently (as in 5 weeks ago) broke his neck and is now paralyzed from the chest down. Completely. He is 34 years old. He is fighting like hell right now, fighting through the pain and the depression. He wants to have a life, an independent life. He does not want a broken neck to kill him. He is incredible to witness. Of course, he is on a roller coaster ride of emotions right now. Some days are terrible as you can imagine. But he's not giving up. Celine is not giving up. She knows she has nothing to prove. She just wants to live, like all of us do. Live to the fullest she can. If that means she has to crawl, she will crawl. We should all have such fight inside of us. Such defiance against the odds. Anyway, after I watch the whole thing maybe my thoughts will be different.
Dear Mary. Unfortunately I can’t read the article because I am not subscribed to the NYT. I read an interview with the director in the guardian however. My unease watching Celine suffer actually came from deep compassion towards her. I am not for a second suggesting that she should give up on life, or her passions! Quite the opposite!! As a single mother I especially felt affinity towards her, and want to make sure she’s healthy and there also for her children. But right before the seizure I felt she was pushing too hard on a recording and not recognizing her limits. It was actually heartbreaking to watch. I want her to continue to fight for her life, and the best version of this life, but also take the much needed rest so she will have the strength to do so. I wrote this from my own experience as someone who tends to push herself and fight hard, but also as a yoga teacher. Sometimes our bodies will break down and force us to take care of ourselves when we fail to do that naturally. Again, from experience, when that happens to me, my body heals and cooperates much faster when I listen. I really wish the best for Celine and anyone struggling with a debilitating disease. All I was trying to say is that stopping, occasionally, doesn’t mean giving up! And certainly not giving up on life! :)
Not to worry Mary! I don’t get easily offended and we are all entitled for our opinions:) and sometimes the nuances don’t come across as well in a written message/ comment. Perhaps this subject is much bigger than I thought..?
Thank you, Imola. I am so emotional about my friend who broke his neck. I am, in truth, devastated. And I think it colored my thoughts when I responded to you. Apologies.
I completely understand Mary! I am wishing the very best to your friend. I can only imagine how difficult it must be. Sending you a big hug. And no need to apologise (ever)!
Thank you for this post. I've only seen the documentary trailers and they already made me so uneasy. I didn't realize why until I read your words. This is what we do, this unrelenting pushing. There's no part of it that makes sense. I watch people do this and then... I look in the mirror. America is a place to learn to pick yourself up by your boot straps. Again. And again. I learned well, and now I am unlearning because life in its infinite beauty is flying by. I want / need to tune in to that beauty without making the pursuit of beauty a driving, obsessive force. Thank you again for this, your post will have me pondering ( and maybe resting a bit as well). 🧡
Aw. Thank you Diana. I think you are doing all this (life in its infinite beauty) already! :) I think this culture is not limited to America. I grew up with it. So we are all unlearning, and learning together.
Yes, thank you! I have such a strong reaction to resilience and 'grit' as new age 'pull yourself up by the bootstraps' and I think everyone needs someone to hold their hand and encourage them to stop, pause, breathe, however momentary they can access in that moment.
Must be something swirling in the zeitgeist this week...Anne Helen Petersen writes about resilience in today's Culture Study, and I'm seeing connections to my own newsletter offering this week. I pushed myself to my limits for years, and as you note, my body (and mind, too, of course) kept score. I know how hard it is to put into practice ways of being that counter all the forces that push us. Interrogating our ideas about resiliency is such a necessary good start. Appreciate your thoughts on this and the concrete ways you share to build a different model of resiliency. Wishing you all the best in meeting your manuscript goals!
Thank you so much Rita! Yes, there is definitely much nuance to be explored regarding resilience. This week I painfully witnessed Céline Dion unable to stop, and we all saw Joe Biden on stage pretending to have it together when he should have stepped aside long time ago. These are not healthy role models of resilience for me. Their message is dangerous. As with everything, there needs to be a balance.
I know that I grew up with these kinds of models; working hard and powering through were seen as virtues. I can see now also that for me they were part of denial and escape. I think that for my grandparents and great-grandparents, powering through was a survival mechanism--it was how they coped with trauma and hardship of various kinds. I still see the virtue of resiliency, but everything that's a strength has its shadow side. I'd love to see us redefining what resiliency even is. I see the younger generation doing that, and it gives me hope that Dion's version of it will give way to something healthier. (I have so much empathy for her. Lots to unpack in her life story!)
I so relate to everything you say here!! Me too! :( and I felt/ feel a lot of empathy and compassion for Celine as well when I watched her, which is why I was so heartbroken and also angry. Redefining resilience- what a great idea! Sending you much love
“you are loved. You are enough as you are. You don’t need to prove anything.” - we need to have this on repeat in our ears 24/7 💕
Imagine what a different world it would be if everyone embodied that.💕
Yes… I know my life would be very different. 💕
Did you happen to see this interview with the film's director?: https://www.nytimes.com/2024/06/25/movies/celine-dion-documentary-seizure-stiff-person-syndrome.html
I have not watched the documentary, so perhaps I shouldn't respond. (I did, however, fast forward just now to the scene in the end that you refer to in your post.) I just want to say that I don't understand your take on this. Celine is her own boss. She knows what she's doing. She's in charge of her life and her decisions. She is quite young and has children to raise. She shows defiance against a disease that is trying to stop her from living her life. She is saying, no way am I going to give up. She knows her limitations, she knows she has to take care of herself. She's done that for years.And she is surrounded by people who care about her. I don't see her as overly pushing herself when it comes to her disease. I see her as being life-affirming, not ready to quit until she just can't do it anymore. I applaud that in her. I have a friend who recently (as in 5 weeks ago) broke his neck and is now paralyzed from the chest down. Completely. He is 34 years old. He is fighting like hell right now, fighting through the pain and the depression. He wants to have a life, an independent life. He does not want a broken neck to kill him. He is incredible to witness. Of course, he is on a roller coaster ride of emotions right now. Some days are terrible as you can imagine. But he's not giving up. Celine is not giving up. She knows she has nothing to prove. She just wants to live, like all of us do. Live to the fullest she can. If that means she has to crawl, she will crawl. We should all have such fight inside of us. Such defiance against the odds. Anyway, after I watch the whole thing maybe my thoughts will be different.
Dear Mary. Unfortunately I can’t read the article because I am not subscribed to the NYT. I read an interview with the director in the guardian however. My unease watching Celine suffer actually came from deep compassion towards her. I am not for a second suggesting that she should give up on life, or her passions! Quite the opposite!! As a single mother I especially felt affinity towards her, and want to make sure she’s healthy and there also for her children. But right before the seizure I felt she was pushing too hard on a recording and not recognizing her limits. It was actually heartbreaking to watch. I want her to continue to fight for her life, and the best version of this life, but also take the much needed rest so she will have the strength to do so. I wrote this from my own experience as someone who tends to push herself and fight hard, but also as a yoga teacher. Sometimes our bodies will break down and force us to take care of ourselves when we fail to do that naturally. Again, from experience, when that happens to me, my body heals and cooperates much faster when I listen. I really wish the best for Celine and anyone struggling with a debilitating disease. All I was trying to say is that stopping, occasionally, doesn’t mean giving up! And certainly not giving up on life! :)
I just read my comments over and i didn't mean to sound so harsh! Sorry about that. I wrote quickly and hit send.
Not to worry Mary! I don’t get easily offended and we are all entitled for our opinions:) and sometimes the nuances don’t come across as well in a written message/ comment. Perhaps this subject is much bigger than I thought..?
Thank you, Imola. I am so emotional about my friend who broke his neck. I am, in truth, devastated. And I think it colored my thoughts when I responded to you. Apologies.
I completely understand Mary! I am wishing the very best to your friend. I can only imagine how difficult it must be. Sending you a big hug. And no need to apologise (ever)!
xoxo
Thank you for this post. I've only seen the documentary trailers and they already made me so uneasy. I didn't realize why until I read your words. This is what we do, this unrelenting pushing. There's no part of it that makes sense. I watch people do this and then... I look in the mirror. America is a place to learn to pick yourself up by your boot straps. Again. And again. I learned well, and now I am unlearning because life in its infinite beauty is flying by. I want / need to tune in to that beauty without making the pursuit of beauty a driving, obsessive force. Thank you again for this, your post will have me pondering ( and maybe resting a bit as well). 🧡
Aw. Thank you Diana. I think you are doing all this (life in its infinite beauty) already! :) I think this culture is not limited to America. I grew up with it. So we are all unlearning, and learning together.
Yes, thank you! I have such a strong reaction to resilience and 'grit' as new age 'pull yourself up by the bootstraps' and I think everyone needs someone to hold their hand and encourage them to stop, pause, breathe, however momentary they can access in that moment.
Must be something swirling in the zeitgeist this week...Anne Helen Petersen writes about resilience in today's Culture Study, and I'm seeing connections to my own newsletter offering this week. I pushed myself to my limits for years, and as you note, my body (and mind, too, of course) kept score. I know how hard it is to put into practice ways of being that counter all the forces that push us. Interrogating our ideas about resiliency is such a necessary good start. Appreciate your thoughts on this and the concrete ways you share to build a different model of resiliency. Wishing you all the best in meeting your manuscript goals!
Thank you so much Rita! Yes, there is definitely much nuance to be explored regarding resilience. This week I painfully witnessed Céline Dion unable to stop, and we all saw Joe Biden on stage pretending to have it together when he should have stepped aside long time ago. These are not healthy role models of resilience for me. Their message is dangerous. As with everything, there needs to be a balance.
I know that I grew up with these kinds of models; working hard and powering through were seen as virtues. I can see now also that for me they were part of denial and escape. I think that for my grandparents and great-grandparents, powering through was a survival mechanism--it was how they coped with trauma and hardship of various kinds. I still see the virtue of resiliency, but everything that's a strength has its shadow side. I'd love to see us redefining what resiliency even is. I see the younger generation doing that, and it gives me hope that Dion's version of it will give way to something healthier. (I have so much empathy for her. Lots to unpack in her life story!)
I so relate to everything you say here!! Me too! :( and I felt/ feel a lot of empathy and compassion for Celine as well when I watched her, which is why I was so heartbroken and also angry. Redefining resilience- what a great idea! Sending you much love
Back at you 💚