Today, I noticed that I am writing a blog after a break of nearly 42 days. So I started looking at my online notes ” Blogging on the go” and noticed where I have captured some drafts. In the last 42 days, I made a lot of notes but was not able to ship out any blog. Looks like I was caught in the “busyness” of life. So after a brief hiatus, I decided to get back into my writing spree. The best place to always go is your drafts. One particular draft was about the movie ” Matrix”. Between my wife and I, we have spoken so many times about the movie and we were happy that finally we decided to see that movie one day. I think Morpheus said it just for us :
The Matrix is an American sci-fi film series written and directed by Wachowski Brothers (now Sisters) depicting a dystopian future where humanity is trapped inside a simulated reality, the Matrix, created by machines to distract humans from a gruesome truth. However, there is a city deep inside the crust catering to thousands of humans who were set free. Keanu Reeves as “Neo” is prophesied to be the “one” to bring a balance between the two races.
We heard enough of the Matrix, in fact, in the year 2003, we saw the sequel Matrix Reloaded without seeing the 1999 version of the Matrix. In the last few years, I have seen a lot of usage of punch lines from the movie. So on a Saturday evening after dinner, while we were checking the movies it somehow popped into my mind and I asked my wife “ shall we see the Matrix?” She instantly agreed and it was time to convert that dream into reality, and yes ” the Matrix was getting loaded.”
I Have Dreamed A Dream, But Now That Dream Is Gone From Me.”
After 40 mins I noticed that we both were getting sleepy and quite frankly I was not enjoying the pace of the movie(a result of too many crime thriller movies I have consumed in the last year). I heard about the red pill and blue pill, and that time more than the pill I was looking for the pillow. We reconciled to the fact that this “movie” demanded more attention and hence postponed it to the next day.
The next day I was busy till 12 noon as I completed all my routine work I decided to take the red pill and got into the kitchen and made a yellow dal as it reminded me of my young days when my mother used to make it with Chappathi. It was a rabbit hole moment for me as I was trying to do my best to get the best combination of ingredients with the right proportions and make it palatable My daughter was not impressed and she had everything except the yellow dal ( such a simple dish, I’m wondering what was missing !).
With a post-noon coffee, we reconvened again to give a shot at the Matrix. My wife had already told my elder daughter who came on a video call that even though your dad proclaimed how productive his first half was, he will have a siesta in the second half. Yes, short bursts of sleep were part of my weekend routines to get my energy levels back. In the process, I missed some scenes of the movie again and I had to catch up with the pace of the movie by stopping and asking some questions to my wife for clarification. By the time the movie crossed the halfway mark, I judged that this movie is worth a second watch as I was in a waking state. Big ideas, philosophical meanings, and questions of choice and identity all wrapped around in this movie, I understood why it is important to watch such a movie with a lot of intent. Surely I knew a blog can be made out of this experience.
Be that as it may, I could manage to catch up with the action sequences of the movie slowly and steadily. I was engaged and as those dialogues unfurled it gave me goosebumps, particularly this one below and the insight that NEO is an anagram for ONE. I loved ” Matrix” for this simple ONE message from NEO.
Matrix is used as an allegory for fixed mindset vs growth mindset. My wife was so impressed that she started checking the sequels. On the other hand, I was arranging my bags for the business trip and finishing some emails. Later I started appreciating the movie for the idea and its technical brilliance especially as It was made in the late 90s. Matrix to me was a metaphor for all things difficult to understand and comprehend. Once you start understanding what your mind is telling you, you can decide to change track and take control.
The last 42 days have been in a way preoccupied with so many things professionally and personally that I did not “make time” not “find time” to sit down and write. As they say, ” Writer’s block is not the problem, The problem is not writing”. Every weekend I used to look forward to my routine of coffee, meditation, journaling, and then blogging. I knew I had to do it. Matrix showed me why it is so important to follow this simple message which I forgot in the last 42 days.
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