"When Will My Life Begin?"

Hello Everyone!  I think I am back to blog-y land, and first off I wanted to share a good post I found last week.  I thought it made some great points on the subject of the world viewing the keeper at home life as not good enough.  Take a moment to read...

 

When Will This Life Begin?
By Abigail Stricklen

 

"7 AM, the usual morning lineup:

Start on the chores and sweep 'til the floor's all clean

Polish and wax, do laundry, and mop and shine up

Sweep again, and by then it's like 7: 15.

And so I'll read a book

Or maybe two or three

I'll add a few new paintings to my gallery

I'll play guitar and knit

And cook and basically

Just wonder when will my life begin?

Then after lunch it's puzzles and darts and baking

Paper mache, a bit of ballet and chess

Pottery and ventriloquy, candle making

Then I'll stretch, maybe sketch, take a climb,Sew a dress!

And I'll reread the books

If I have time to spare

I'll paint the walls some more,

I'm sure there's room somewhere.

And then I'll brush and brush,and brush and brush my hair

Stuck in the same place I've always been.

And I'll keep wonderin' and wonderin'

And wonderin' and wonderin'

When will my life begin?

Disclaimer: I understand that in the movie, Rapunzel had been locked up in a tower with her deranged, evil kidnapper/mother for the course of her life. That is however, not the case of most of the girls watching the movie (Well, I certainly hope not). The message that the producers want girls to take away from this song (and the movie in general) is blazingly clear.

She starts her day at 7 am. "She rises while it is yet night." Proverbs 31:15
She sweeps, polishes, waxes, does laundry, mops, and shines. "She works with willing hands." Proverbs 31:13
She reads books. She educates herself. "Wisdom is the principal thing; therefore get wisdom: and with all thy getting get understanding." Proverbs 4:7

She paints, plays, guitar, knits...good grief, where does it end with this girl? Again, "she works with willing hands."
She cooks! "She rises while it is yet night and provides food for her household." Proverbs 31:15

"Puzzles and darts and baking, Paper mache, a bit of ballet and chess, Pottery and ventriloquy, candle making
Then I'll stretch, maybe sketch, take a climb!" Wow, she is one accomplished young woman, I'd say! All of these are wonderful, challenging things. She sure sounds educated and competent in many areas! "She dresses herself with strength and makes her arms strong." Proverbs 31:17

SEW A DRESS! "She is not afraid of snow for her household, for all her household are clothed in scarlet. She makes coverings for herself; her clothing is fine linen and purple." Proverbs 31:21-22

Then, she reads again, she paints the walls, she brushes her hair. Whew! What a day! Feels good to be accomplished and productive doesn't it?
But wait..... "Stuck in the same place I've always been.And I'll keep wonderin' and wonderin'And wonderin' and wonderin'When will my life begin? "

Your life? Look at the list of things you did today! That's not life? Your life hasn't begun even though you've just cleaned your whole house, read some good books, painted, played guitar, knitted, cooked, did puzzles, played darts, baked, did paper mache, practiced ballet, played chess, made pottery, practiced ventriloquy, made candles, stretched, sketched, climbed, sewed a dress, read again, painted some more, and brushed your hair? ALL IN ONE DAY?

Ok. Before you judge this whole post as me being derogatory, go read my disclaimer above. I understand Rapunzel's position. But that is most definitely not the position of any little girl watching that movie or listening to that song. Do you see the pattern? Every line of that song could be backed up by a Proverbs 31 woman verse! Rapunzel was a Proverbs 31 woman! What a great gal!
But she was wonderin, and wonderin, and wonderin, and wonderin, WHEN WILL HER LIFE BEGINNNNNN? (you know you just sang that)

Obviously, the producers of that movie wanted to get the message across that all those great things Rapunzel was doing were not good enough. Which is why she had to escape from her "authority," gallivant around the country with a cute criminal, fight a few evil, non-cute criminals, save the cute criminal from certain death by her evil mother (this is portraying authority as a bad thing), and basically be the greatest hero ever....because being a Proverbs 31 woman is simply not good enough. See what I'm trying to say here? Obviously Rapunzel's situation is an exaggerated version of some girl's lives. You want to get away from your parent's authority, you don't want to do what you're told, you want to go out into the world and be the hero. But guess what? When you do that...when you leave everything you've ever known with "Prince Charming-who-isn't-your-husband-who's-probably-gonna-end-up-being-a-lousy-bum-very-unlike-Flynn-Ryder, chances are.....YOU WON'T HAVE A CUTE FAIRYTALE ENDING. Because I PROMISE, you will NOT save him from certain death with whatever super-power you happen to possess (Face it, we all want sparkly magic hair and it's not gonna happen). You will never find your long-lost King and Queen parents because you left them at home, and you will most CERTAINLY not get a castle. Things will not turn out as ducky as you thought they would. But you will expect all of that because that is what everyone is telling you will happen! Go out! Face the world! Earn your freedom! Everything will be great and you'll even get a Prince and a castle at the end of it!
Nope, nope, nope, nope, NOPE.

Be content, ladies. The world wants to tell you that you're not good enough, but you ARE. There's so much pressure out there to be better than God's best. God's best is what we want to strive for. God told us what he wants us to be in his beautiful Word. Be content. Don't let the pressure of this world get you down. Keep on cooking and baking and cleaning and doing that gross laundry, BECAUSE THAT IS GOOD ENOUGH. It's GOOD! It's beautiful and praise-worthy!! Live up to God's standard, not the world's.
Okay, now I'm done picking on Tangled. I like that movie, haha. ;)

~By Abigail Stricklen