"What would you do if you were stuck in one place, and every day was exactly the same, and nothing that you did mattered?"-Bill Murray playing the fictitious Pittsburgh weatherman Phil Connors in the 1993 film Groundhog Day
Some days, perhaps too many, I agree with Ralph (one of the drunks in the bowling alley to which Phil Connors is asking this semi-rhetorical question):
"That about sums it up for me."
A lot of people like to see some form of their life philosophy, spiritual path, or sacred tradition tied up in some way with the movie being discussed. It's the same with films like The Wizard of Oz or It's a Wonderful Life. They speak to basic human questions, and when they do it well, everyone can see a part of themselves in the story. But Buddhists (well, some of them) are especially fond of Groundhog Day because of the concept of the endless cycle of rebirth caused by selfishness which is supposedly reflected in the repetition of February 2nd over and over for the self-centered weatherman character.
But I find the line in the bowling alley really stands out because it helps to take the theme out of the unrealistic plot device of someone literally reliving the EXACT same day over and over with complete conscious continuity and recollection and sends it out into the real world, so to speak. Ralph's familiarity with Phil's plight then is the bridge from comic farce to depressing mediocrity. People are often trapped in circumstances that they may feel are beyond their control. Yes, they could change something, but the consequences (how would I pay the bills, what if I lost my benefits, who would take care of my relative or friend, what about Bob... oh wait, wrong movie, scratch that last question) are so bad that they are actually worse than continuing on in the same depressing rut. Other people may have other reasons for not wanting to change, such as fear of change, or because they don't have faith in their own potential, etc. I am not wanting to short-change these folks, but then, there are plenty of self-help books and seminars as well as peppy phrases and witicisms to help such folks find the courage to change (kidding, I'm kidding).
But what about those who can see no realistic means of transforming their lives in terms of location, vocation, etc. that don't entail fumbling their legitimate responsibilities? The folks who don't just go on a whim and leave it up to others to sort out the mess. The ones who are often known as dependable, reliable, or sensible? In such cases, just "shaking things up" isn't an option, it's a juvenile fantasy that will create an even bigger mess than the one in which the person already finds him or herself.
While I like the film, Phil Connors has plenty of money and, short of leaving Punxsutawney, plenty of options. He has no crushing debt, no dependents, no major health problems, or any other visible major responsibility to worry about other than his job and his attitude about life/other people (and of course why should he in a comedy like Groundhog Day). Many people though, the Ralph's of the world, have two or three or more of these kinds of major responsibilities, and hence the feeling of quiet desperation so brilliantly captured by Rick Overton's delivery (he's the guy who played Ralph the drunk).
So without 453 takes to get a single day right, and given the more complex and tenacious problems and burdens of real life, what would you do? In the film, the main character eventually decided to make the absolute best he could of the situation he was in on behalf of everyone he met, and this became his path to liberation (svaha!). So could Ralph find the same purpose and contentment? Again, I know it's outside the scope of the plot of the comedy, but if we are to use the film as any kind of meaningful analogy, this question seems crucial to me.
If the principles espoused by traditions such as Buddhism are true, then the answer must be "yes". And if the answer is yes, and if you also concur with Ralph's reply, then here is something to consider: What can you do/are you doing to make the absolute best of the situation you are in for everyone you meet?
Just put your little hand in mine
There ain't no hill or mountain
we can't cliiiimb--babe.
I've got you babe.
I've got you babe.
I've got you babe...
Friday, February 2, 2007
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I thought I knew everything about GHD, but I hadn't made the connection that "I Got You, Babe" had meaning beyond the idea that Punxatawney, ego or a time loop had "Got" Phil. Nice to know Sonny and Cher are inspiring.
ReplyDeleteI read Phil's path to liberation a little differently. It seems to me everything became effortless for him at the end. Of course, being trapped in the time loop did relieve him of certain worries. [He was very happy, at first, to discover that he could erase all worries and get A New Day every twenty-four hours. It's a "get out of jail free" card!
It's been a long time since I saw the film, but I think that Phil got a heapin' helpin' of that Buddha mojo: the "cosmic sense" as Bucke calls it in Cosmic Consciousness.
He was no longer afraid of death; he had found that the most interesting thing in the world is other people [excepting, maybe, Ned Ryerson]; he learned to embrace change and to know that change happens everywhere; he learned to embrace static circumstances and know that there is infinite change there, too.
I don't know. It's possible that the Punxsutawney Zen Center might be helpful to Ralph. Or, an additional 453 lifetimes.
But absent the possibility of hopping on the next time loop that passes by so that we can take a one-day express ride to Buddhahood, I do like the idea of, perhaps, focussing on a couple of people and purposefully making the absolute best of our interactions with them. Having them be as important to us as our own self.
You know, being a mini-Buddha. Taking, maybe, the two crankiest people you know and giving them full attention and respect. Maybe by doing that, the virus would spread and we would start, miraculously, treating everyone that way.
Maybe this applies. I ripped off this quote from Clarity's blog:
ReplyDeleteBe patient toward all that is unsolved in your heart and try to love the questions themselves like locked rooms or books that are written in a foreign tongue. The point is to live everything. Live the questions now. Perhaps you will then gradually, without noticing it, live your way some distant day into the answers.
--R.M. Rilke.
quoting Tom: I read Phil's path to liberation a little differently. It seems to me everything became effortless for him at the end. Of course, being trapped in the time loop did relieve him of certain worries...He was no longer afraid of death; he had found that the most interesting thing in the world is other people [excepting, maybe, Ned Ryerson]
ReplyDeleteI don't see how that is different than my take, other than being more detailed. Whether he was on the path of helping others/making the most of each situaton because he had changed, whether he changed because he was making the most of his life in service to others, or some non-dualistic combination. I only note that while he found many things to be eventually effortless, it wasn't until he did everything he possibly could for all those he encountered that he broke the loop. I think the pivotal moment is when Phil says/realizes: "Whatever happens tomorrow, or for the rest of my life, I'm happy now..." To use the common US Buddhist lingo, he was fully present in the Moment (a.k.a. actualizing his full potential in the here and now or however one wants to phrase it). Instead of reliving the past (only in this case literally so), he was 100% in tune with "the Now" (hrmphh).
quoting Tom: {H}e learned to embrace change and to know that change happens everywhere; he learned to embrace static circumstances and know that there is infinite change there, too...
Maybe. I personally didn't really see that, but that's just me after all.
quoting Tom: You know, being a mini-Buddha. Taking, maybe, the two crankiest people you know and giving them full attention and respect. Maybe by doing that, the virus would spread and we would start, miraculously, treating everyone that way.
Yeah - I wanted to capture the idea that there is always an opportunity to make a difference, even if you appear to be "stuck" in the same place, the same job, etc etc. You can make your life matter anywhere by how you live it and share it with those around you. So maybe your mini-Buddha idea would be a good start.
quoting Tom: I thought I knew everything about GHD, but I hadn't made the connection that "I Got You, Babe" had meaning beyond the idea that Punxatawney, ego or a time loop had "Got" Phil. Nice to know Sonny and Cher are inspiring
Well, I originally inserted that at the end as if to say, "Hey, you're like Phil, now come to terms with your own Groundhog Day, your own life." But when I re-read it, I noticed it seemed to be echoing the theme of the importance/power of compassion and unity. Which is funny, because it allows us another analogy we can "read into" the film. The answer, as it were, is being sung to Phil over and over and over, at the start of each day, out in open, but he doesn't really *hear* it, he doesn't get the connection.
tiny,
ReplyDeleteYou write: it wasn't until he did everything he possibly could for all those he encountered that he broke the loop.
I am of a mind that breaking the loop ended up not mattering. He was really liberated earlier. Thus, the Rilke quote: "Perhaps you will then gradually, without noticing it, live your way some distant day into the answers."
Of course, Phil was happy on the new day and after the Rita poontang, but the plan is to wed and stay in Punxsutawney. Thus, he is learning to embrace static circumstances. Or, as the zen saying goes, “There may be more to learn from climbing the same mountain a hundred times than by climbing a hundred different mountains.”
I agree with you that the sentiment "Whatever happens tomorrow, or for the rest of my life, I'm happy now..." is pivotal. That comes when Rita tells him 'he's not a jerk' and falls asleep, unable to say awake till 6am. And in that next looping, Phil begins to 'live everything,' in 'the Now,' as you say.
So, I think we're in agreement, ya?