Unlikely sources of inspiration
Sep 12, 08- (by Diary of a Quitter)
- 3 responses
- Mind, Body, Spirit, Sober Salon
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Uncle Iroh by *Purple-Twilek on deviantART
One of the highlights of my recent depressive episode was time spent watching Avatar: The Last Airbender with my daughter. Sure, it’s a kid’s show, but it’s better than 95% of the crap on the telly these days. We’re all addicted to it here at Casa del Quitter, and we whiled away more than a few rainy days watching Avatar marathons.
The man pictured above is one of my favorite characters, Uncle Iroh. Fallen from power and deprived of his birthright by a conniving brother, he is a fearsome fighter and also a wise and kind man. And from this fictional character’s mouth came the words that I hung on to throughout my recent trials.
Approached by the Avatar Aang for advice (in the episode The Crossroads of Destiny), Iroh says:
Sometimes Life is like this dark tunnel.
You can’t always see the light at the end of the tunnel.
But if you just keep moving, you will come to a better place.
Just. Keep. Moving. I know it had to ferment in my mind for a while, cause the one thing I wasn’t doing was moving. But those words, that simple truth, imparted to me by a damn kid’s tv show, stuck in my mind and comforted me.
Then that truth took hold and I got out of bed and into the shower. Sure, all I did for the rest of that day was watch more Avatar, but I was out of bed. Then I started getting up with C and making her lunch, walking her to the bus stop, staying awake all day. Went to the gym, wrote a blog post, talked to some friends.
Today I went out for coffee with a good friend and I felt like myself again. It worked. I put one foot in front of the other, kept on moving, and I’m finally at the point where I can see that light at the end of the tunnel. And I didn’t have to go back to my doc and ask for more meds, and it didn’t take six months and a nervous breakdown, and I’m not back where I started. In fact, I’m right about where I left off.
Funny how during that whole time I thought I was being so lazy and indulgent, watching all those cartoons, and it turns out I was getting exactly the message I really needed to hear.
-bottlecappie
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Great post! Another Avatar fan here. Yes, Iroh is awesome and a real source of life lessons.
Hi bcimatt! So glad to meet another Iroh fan here. Couldn’t we all use an uncle like him?