#all my (major) victor ships in one place god bless

[dearembraced]

Don't let the same flame burn you twice.

[1writegirl]

As I wrote on Monday of the gentlest creature on earth, the manatee, and of their slow but determined way of existence, their peaceful sentience, and their remarkable ability to both understand and communicate, my mind searched for the proper movie or book to go with it this week. And though I tried to resist it, because of it’s deeply moving (read tear-jerker) storyline, I kept coming back to War Horse, the book by Morpurgo, adapted to stage, and then by Spielberg into film.

The movie simply wouldn’t let me go because the star of the book, a horse named Joey, reminded me of the manatees. Like them he made deliberate decision to keep moving forward, sometimes painstakingly slowly, oftentimes at direct opposition or interference from man. Also like the manatees he had an ability to communicate great truths on a gut level.

If you haven’t read the book or at least seen the movie, then I urge you to do so. Told from the perspective of the horse, it does a supreme job of handling some major themes in our lives that I think are quite àpropos for our day: the horrors of war, and the necessities of dialogue during such horrors, of encouragement to those around us, and of perseverance.

The story is about a horse that, at the outset, experiences loss and abandonment when he’s sold at auction. Still, he befriends a boy, Albert, who names him Joey and trains him. The two form a friendship that’s transcendent.

Then, Albert’s father, in a drunken, heartless state sells Joey to the cavalry in WWI. Through the course of the story, we see war from the unique vantage point of a horse conscripted into one army after another, and we come to understand his treatise on the subject. Even more profound, we experience the horrors of death, loss, and abandonment inevitable in war, through his eyes. However, we also glimpse the hope, determination, courage, and filial bonds that grow out of such horror.

So, you can see simply from my weak description of the storyline, the tale is not an easy one. I will put your mind at ease with this, however, it does have a happy ending, so see it through.

With that, I will take a deep breath here and dive into the themes. First, let me say this, no one knows the future, save God, but I think if we were all honest with one another, each of us feels a quickening in our hearts that war, domestic or abroad, looms ahead. Already other parts of the world are in the midst of their own civil wars. We would do well to take note. (In my humble opinion, we would also do well to lend aid for those caught in it and save whom we can, that in doing so we might save ourselves, and find our hearts on the side of righteousness in the end, but that digresses from my topic about the major themes of War Horse.)

Lessons on War From An Animal of Peace

I love this quote from the story. It speaks volumes with a paucity of words: “Wars make grown men cry.” There is a scene when Captain Nicholls, who initially takes Joey into war on the British side “turns his eyes out to the sea so that no one should notice the tears in them.” Only Joey, his partner in war, sees the man’s despair over a battlefield strewn with the bodies of his men.

Old men send young men to die in war. Old men, no longer able to learn, too set in their ways to change, too encumbered by wealth to let go of it, so filled with greed that they want more money, more power, these are the ones who start wars. They sit quietly at their desks brandishing pens as swords and send young soldiers into battle. Kipling wrote of this after WWI in an epitaph he wrote for a grave, “Ask them why it was we died/tell them/Because our fathers lied. There’s a quote, too, from the story that speaks well to this. It is a description of the horses, but you can see immediately that it would apply to soldiers as well. It says, “When noble creatures such as these are forced to become beasts of burden, the world has gone mad.”

In war, both sides are the same. Joey makes the observation after he’s drafted into service by the English, and later by the Germans, “All that was different were the uniforms.” Each side has both good men and bad men. Each side has men with similar dreams, similar hopes, and similar fears. No one side is all bad and wrong; just as no one side is all good and right.

And finally, there are no victors in war. Everyone loses. It only ends when everyone grows too weary to continue, when suffering for all has become overwhelming. This quote describes that well, “When the end of war did come, it came swiftly. There was little joy, little celebration of victory, only a sense of profound relief.”

The Need for Dialogue and Communication

There is a scene in the movie where Joey becomes entangled in the horrible barbed wire of “No Man’s Land.” A British soldier ties a white handkerchief to the front of his bayonet and moves out to help the horse at his own peril. Eventually a German does the same, when he realizes the Brit has no means of cutting the horse free. The two work together to save the horse, speaking with one another, through the night. When at last they finish, instead of one killing the other to take possession of Joey, they decide on possession through a coin toss.

Later in the tale, this quote sums it up beautifully, “We’ve shown them that any problem can be solved between people if only they can trust each other.” To resolve our differences we absolutely must stop seeing each other as enemies. It’s so ingrained in us to view people with different opinions, lifestyles, and beliefs than our own as hostile others. It simply isn’t true.

Encouraging Friends and Those Around You in Times of Horror

We are only strongest when we are acting together. There will come times when one or more will become discouraged and want to quit. That is when others must step in and hold them up. We see this throughout the narrative:

Joey compensates for the poor horsemanship of Trooper Warren to keep him from falling off and this encourages Warren who says, “You’ve done that for me, Joey. Given me back my confidence. Feel I can do anything now. Feel like one of those knights in armor when I’m with you.”

The singing, whistling soldiers brought the horses a sense of renewed exhilaration in the long battle.

And this from Joey, “My comfort came from Topthorn, (his fellow horse buddy that stuck with him the whole way.) who would lean his great head over the stall and let me rest on his neck.

And again from Joey, “Topthorn, I noticed, always shook his head in the water before he started to drink, so that alongside him I was showered all over my face and neck with cooling water.”

The word encourage comes from a word picture of two ships lashing themselves together to ride out a storm. It is a “bulwark never failing.” We are stronger together than apart.

The Need for Perseverance and Determination

Joey exemplifies this at every turn in his journey. He just keeps moving forward. He takes on every duty assigned him from carrying Captain Nicholls, to pulling an ambulance wagon, to hauling guns up muddy hills, to taking the place of his exhausted friend Topthorn when Topthorn can go no farther.

Despite starvation and dehydration, he keeps going…until he loses someone he dearly loves. That is the first time he flees. And when he does, he lands ensnared in “No Man’s Land.” He learns the painful lesson that running away can make matters worse.

#gallery-0-5 { margin: auto; } #gallery-0-5 .gallery-item { float: left; margin-top: 10px; text-align: center; width: 50%; } #gallery-0-5 img { border: 2px solid #cfcfcf; } #gallery-0-5 .gallery-caption { margin-left: 0; } /* see gallery_shortcode() in wp-includes/media.php */

  Still, in the same lesson, he learns that God can take our mistakes and use them for good. Because of his mistake, two soldiers from opposing sides dialogue.

He also never forgets his old friend, Albert. And in the end, he…well, you’ll just have to read it or watch it to see for yourself.

We must keep moving forward. Even if it seems we are moving at a snail’s pace, we must keep striving for what is right. Even if the outcome seems hopeless, we must keep pushing forward. For in the end, it isn’t about winning or losing, it’s about how we strove to finish the tasks placed before us. So, stand strong, never give up, never cease choosing love. Give love, live loved, be the change this world needs. Have a blessed weekend everybody.

Lessons on War From an Animal of Peace: War Horse As I wrote on Monday of the gentlest creature on earth, the manatee, and of their slow but determined way of existence, their peaceful sentience, and their remarkable ability to both understand and communicate, my mind searched for the proper movie or book to go with it this week.