Field of Dreams

"Truth can only be expressed aesthetically--in story, picture, film, dance and music." This is a quote from "Dark Nights of the Soul" by Thomas Moore. It is also what this blog is ultimately about (see my side bar). Tonight, I caught the film, Field of Dreams on AMC and the tears just flowed at a movie I have seen many times, in fact even own. It is a story where a corn field turned baseball field heals, fulfills, and transforms lives. It is a great movie, perhaps the best Baseball movie of all time ( also Bull Durham)! If you see it you will cry and if you don't, you must not have blood in your veins. Men, especially men who never cry, weep at this one. It is about a father and a son separated by stubbornness and hurtful words who are healed because of a willingness to listen to the inner voice that can guide us all to truth. Many in the movie ask if this place (the field) is heaven. Ray, (Kevin Costner) always answers, "No, this is Iowa!" Then in the end after his father tells him that heaven is a place where dreams come true, Ray says, "Then maybe this is heaven! There are so many other story lines too....a failed ball player turned doctor gets to fulfill a dream and then fate returns him to his true calling......Shoeless Joe Jackson gets to play ball again.....A great writer from the 1960's becomes re-inspired to follow his calling to write.....the farm Rays owns, deep in financial trouble is saved by the inspiration of it all as people flock to pay and see what only those who believe can see...a baseball field in the middle of nowhere with legendary (dead) players playing ball! OK...had enough??? :-) I am going to post a song from the movie by The Doobies...

I had to write this post even though I was too tired to really want to because it all connects to this Sundays Sermon at First Church in Pittsfield. In that sermon we were told to read poetry, listen to music, watch a movie, view art, (See the first line of this post) because Soul (meaning) can be found, inspiration leads to inspiration, and truth can be revealed through imagination today. Enough from me...I will now post the last part of the sermon which contains a song and then the closing words from Sunday's sermon.....please listen, it is the inspiration for this post!


So It wasn't hard for me to complete this assignment. My blog is all about the arts and imagination and meaning. This movie tonight took me to another place. It inspired this entry and created tears and emotion and feeling I can only begin to explain! For me it was magic and for a moment heaven? Emerson said, "The poet stands one step nearer to things" and "Turns the world to glass." I say that truth is cultivated by art, music and literature.