Hi everyone, it is I, your Feisty Indian Aunty who just watched the Australian movie Penguin Bloom with very mixed feelings. This is the true story about a sea-loving family of surfers – Samantha (Naomi Watts), who had an accident during a holiday in Thailand and is paralyzed waist down, her husband, Cameron (Andrew Lincoln), and their three boys, Noah, Rueben and Oli. Back home in Australia, the family tries very hard to keep their lives together by managing a depressed and dejected mother who finds no joy in her life. Everyone in the family keep their feelings to themselves, tip-toeing around Sam, pretending that everything is normal.
One day, while playing at the beach, Sam’s son Noah finds an injured magpie who they name Penguin. The magpie struggles to survive despite the care given by the children. And Sam, trapped within her own mind and struggling with her paralysis, refuses to participate in the family activities. Soon she realizes that Penguin needs her as much as she needs him. The magpie eventually recovers, finds his wings, and flies away. As does Sam, who finds her nerve to go back to the sea, to that one place which is her innate passion.
Being a sportswoman myself I was terribly upset when my orthopaedic surgeon told me I could do no more sports. My elbows and knees were so diseased that the only way I could keep fit was to go for walks. Seeing how distressed I was with this diagnosis, and despite having to deal with constant pain in my joints, I am nevertheless still able to lead a relatively normal life. I can barely imagine how Sam would have felt, as a surfer, being paralyzed for life. I cannot fathom her despair in not being able to walk again, to never feel the sand in between her toes, or the water beneath her feet.
My biggest fear with growing old is having to depend on someone to look after me. I hate the idea of not being independent, of not being able to look after myself, of not being able to do all of the basic physical things we do every day – going to the toilet, getting out bed, dressing myself, walking out in the sun, walking into the sea. Just simply performing those everyday activities that we take for granted.
Such a situation is terrifying if you happen to be in one. You must know that you have choices – albeit some seriously soul searching ones. You can choose to end your life. You can choose to be miserable and make everyone who loves you miserable in the process. Or you can accept what has happened and make the best of it. You can rediscover yourself and the world around you. You can work out what to do with the rest of your life while dealing with your disabilities. Living a life is a choice. You can either make it better or worse. Being happy is not a natural condition but learned one. Sam learned.
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