The October Amaryllis

Chapter 73 - May 23rd, 2020 1:46 P.M.

I genuinely enjoyed the movie. I know that's a shocking statement coming from me, considering I hate everything, but it's the truth. I would even go so far as to call it one of the greatest animated films ever made. One thing I liked about it was that it didn't come off as preachy. I feel like with a lot of Christian movies, they come off as self-righteous.

My favorite part of the movie was when the ten plagues struck Egypt. It's such a dark scene for a kid's movie, but man, is it breathtaking. I also liked how they made Ramses a tragic villain; I honestly felt sympathy for him despite his awful actions. I feel like no one in this world is truly righteous or truly evil; we're on a sort of spectrum. I like to believe that most people are good, but it's hard when there is so much hatred in the world.

"Analee, I gotta be honest. I thought it would be awful, but it genuinely impressed me. You know what scene I thought was amazing?"

"Let me guess, the one where Moses runs through a bunch of hieroglyphs?" she asked with a tiny smile.

"How did you know?" I asked, surprised.

"I just had a feeling. My favorite scene is where Moses confronts Ramses after his son dies. He was a villain, but I felt bad for him. He just wanted to be accepted by his father. Sometimes, we will do crazy things to be accepted by someone."

"I feel like a lot of people in this world do what's popular over what's right. The truth has never been popular because it often hurts. It sickens me to see so much materialism in this world. People are buying expensive clothes just to show off; that's pathetic to me. Why should I waste my money on something that isn't worth the price? People should buy something because it has value, not because everyone else is doing it. I just feel like society is concerned with the wrong things; it promotes selfishness. How can we change the world when all we love is ourselves?"

"Clive, that was the most profound thing I've heard in a while. I completely agree with what you said. I feel like many people know what the truth is but don't accept it. The thing is, accepting something requires us to acknowledge we need to change. People don't want to change."

"Not all change is good; I think people often forget that. Sometimes, things become worse, and when they do, we appreciate the past. You never know what you have until it's gone, you know?"

"Trust me, I know. When you lose something or someone, it changes your entire life. It's like you have to fill the hole with something else. For example, I listen to music to distract myself from life's problems. I can't imagine life without it. It will never leave you no matter how many years pass by. I wish it was like that with people. I wish good people never left," she said, fighting back emotions. At that moment, I started thinking about all the people I lost throughout my life and how much I missed them.

There was a bit of an awkward silence for about ten seconds following this.

"Do you know the song I Wish Grandpa's Never Died by Riley Green?" she asked out of nowhere.

"I don't actually, but I would like to listen to it," I said with a genuine smile. Being around Analee made me feel safe and loved.

"Okay, hold on," she said as she took a JBL Charge 3 speaker out of her backpack. She connected her phone to Bluetooth and put the song on.

I won't lie; the song made me emotional. It made me think about my family and how much they loved me. My family is crazy, but I wouldn't have it any other way. There's a certain beauty in chaos. Without it, would we really value anything? I doubt we would.

"That was a beautiful song," I said with a pained smile.

"There's a country song for everything. There's this one song that's a guilty pleasure of mine. It's A-"