Fame And Ethan Hawke's Tomorrow

 

Fame And Ethan Hawke's Tomorrow

This is from June 7, 2020!
If you had asked me who Ethan Hawke was last week, I might have for a second confused him with the skateboarder (Tony Hawk) before somewhere in  memory knowing he's an actor. I don't go to the movies much and after googling him, discovered I've only seen one of his films. Ironically, it was Dead Poets Society which was his first if I am correct. Several days ago, a link for a short interview with Mr.  Hawke popped up on YouTube and even though I would not  have recognized him, the title was intriguing: What No One Told Ethan Hawke About Being Famous. It was only a couple of minutes long but he said a few things I thought were insightful. One is he surmised that famous people tend to marry other celebrities because they are both in a sense isolated from the world. He also told a sad story where he went to a university to give a talk to film students. Hawke had wisdom he was eager to share and in return, wanted to hear their ideas but they weren't interested. All they wanted was to take pictures with him and he came off as truly disappointed with the experience. 
{*Side note here: I really like a comment left after the video clip which I thought illustrated the kind of reception Ethan Hawke hoped for:
"This reminds me of when Dave Chapelle came to Toronto 15 years ago and my friend and I wanted a photo with him. He looked at us and said "What's up I'm Dave, how are you guys doing?" This began a 30-40 minute conversation about life and all kinds of stuff. At the end I didn't even want a photo because it felt weird so we just shook hands and said 'see ya Dave.' It made me realize he was just a funny guy who did comedy for a living and happened to be famous."}

The key take away I had, though, from the mini-documentary was what he related to becoming famous quickly and recognizable to the masses. Hawke and the interviewer agreed that fame causes people who don't know you to have already formed assumptions about you. Hawke said, "Shortly after Reality Bites (1994 movie set in Houston) came out, I never had a chance to make a first impression again. It's a weird thing to give up because the idea that I can start again tomorrow is valuable to us. I can be better tomorrow."

I doubt Mr. Hawke is a theologian but his words there have real some depth to them. One of the great threads of Scripture is that there is hope, there can be a brighter day after today. Even when I sin, there is forgiveness. Even when I fall, I can get back up. Even when I am a jerk, I can make it right. Every morning when I wake, I quote four verses  to prepare myself for the day:
Psalm 118:24- This is the day......
Luke 18:1- Then Jesus told His disciples a parable....
Ephesians 3:20-21- Now to Him who is able......
The fourth is Lamentations 3:22-24 (ESV)
22 The steadfast love of the Lord never ceases;
his mercies never come to an end;
23 they are new every morning;
  great is your faithfulness.
24 “The Lord is my portion,” says my soul,
    “therefore I will hope in him.”
Many are more familiar with these three verses from Lamentations since  Edith McNeill of Houston beautifully set them to music. The great takeaway for me has always been that God is merciful everyday, morning-noon-night. We, with His mercy, can be better on Wednesday than Tuesday. We can make amends. We can grow and we aren't locked into our past or what people may think of
us, accurately or not. I think deep down, many or most of us have wondered what fame, the kind that Ethan Hawke lives, would be like. Maybe the Lord in His mercy has kept it from us. Maybe that's His greatest mercy.

To watch the very short Ethan Hawke clip,  click or copy/paste the link below:https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=F9FDmDVy6yg&t=80s

Applicable quote of the day:
"Fame exhausts me."
Alice Walker

God bless,
Steve
Luke 18:1