beauty sighting #2

Not too long ago I went by myself to see the movie La La Land.  And I loved it.  It reminded me why we have movies in the first place and how they can be so very good.  I pretty much smiled and cried through the whole thing.  (Surely there's a word for that.  Smying, perhaps? I'm going with it.) I smied through the whole beautiful thing.  

I was in no hurry to leave after "The End" appeared on screen and I sat through the credits, listening to the music, as the theater emptied out.  Soon, I was the only one left and an employee, a teenage boy, came in to start the thankless task of cleaning up.  

"Did you enjoy the movie, ma'am?" he called up to me while cleaning a few rows down.  And then I did one of the things I do best: I gushed.  "Oh, I loved it.  It was so beautiful and full of wonder.  The music.  The dancing.  Happy and sad.  It was magical.  It was magic.  Magic."  I paused, looked at him and asked, "Have you seen it?" He had not, he said, but was hoping to see it in the next couple of weeks.  

Then, full of La La Land magic, I asked this teenage boy a question: "Are you a dreamer?" I could tell the question caught him off guard.  But he stopped cleaning and thought for a moment.  "I don't know," he finally answered, "I've never thought about it before.  But maybe I am.  Yes, I think I am."  And he smiled up at me.

In that case, I told him, he must see La La Land.  It's for the ones who dream.  We wished each other a good day and I walked out.  I have no idea if this conversation meant anything to him, all I know is that as I left the theater, I felt like dancing.  

Dear God, help me to not be in a hurry.  Help me to be willing, simply willing, to engage with others.  Perhaps most of all, help me to trust that somehow even the smallest of interactions can hold beauty.