Phoenix Rising

Once upon a time...

In a land called “America” on a planet named “Earth”, chaos consumed the local civilization. Their society had been built on a crumbling foundation of greed, where few thrived while the many struggled to survive. The societal tension that had been building for generations had finally cracked the surface. Unfolding like a big box-office dystopian thriller, this world was changing.

The question the people were faced with now was how to move forward. What next? Do they stay the course, maintain the status quo? No. They had evolved enough to value their lives. But what did change look like?

On a lonely day in June on that strange planet named "Earth", I was sitting on my couch staring at a blank TV. I was torn between staying in isolation to help slow the spread of a virulent pestilence or taking to the streets in protest of the rampant injustice that had also infected the nation. The choice was insurmountable. I didn’t know how to change the world. Instead of spiraling into a hopeless depression, I decide to disconnect from the matrix of reality, and plug into the fabricated reality of television. A wonder of human creation. People looking out into the world and re-imagining it. Re-styling and re-creating and sharing it with the masses with the hopes of eliciting a response. A connection through visual, moving art. But now, I was faced with another difficult choice.

What to watch?

I took too long to decide and fell asleep in front of the blank screen.

Fade to black.

I wake up to the thunderous sound of bombs dropping. The world outside glows orange and fire overtakes the scenery. I see a spaceship in the distance and run toward it. The craft takes off and we leave the planet just as it explodes. The spaceship I am on joins a fleet of other ships, and I catch sight of the name of the largest, Battlestar Galactica. The world I was on has been attacked by a race of androids that humans had created to battle each other with, only to be betrayed and attacked themselves. The android race, known as Cylons, thought themselves superior, and were attempting to exterminate the entire human race.

I had left one apocalyptic world and landed in another.

I transfer to the Battlestar Galactica and am introduced to its crew. They are scared, but they are also scrappy and resilient. The new head of the military, Commander Adama, and the new president of the people, Laura Roslin, struggle to find equilibrium in leading the people. Do they follow faith, do they follow established rules? Do they run? Do they fight? The ship is filled with interesting and diverse people. Many are deeply flawed, but doing the best they can with what they have, they each deal with the long road to survival in their own way.

The Cylons continue to chase us to the outer reaches of space, and yet, this feisty cast of characters continue to fight for their survival. I am reminded of the unyielding strength of the human spirit. That undeniable desire to survive and create a better life.

Even when all odds point toward extinction, they fight. They try. I see now that to rebuild, sometimes destruction is necessary. We can either learn from our mistakes or repeat them. But if we come together, agree that just surviving isn’t enough and take steps towards thriving, maybe, just maybe, there is hope for us yet.

The scene fades to black again, and when I reawaken, I am on a different spaceship. This one is smaller, quite cozy actually. It’s a Firefly class starship. The captain, Mal, used to be in the military on Earth, but desperate times, and societal collapse that rivals our own has led him on the path of becoming something of a pirate. Unfolding like a space western, we accept a job, the ask-no-questions type, and find ourselves in the middle of an intergalactic conspiracy perpetuated by an oligarchical government. Corruption and greed has spread to every corner of the galaxy. I wonder for a moment if this is the inevitable conclusion to every large-scale society. The few thrive while the many struggle to survive.

I meet Inara. She is what is known in this world as a “companion”. In our world, she would be known as a prostitute. In this society however, she is held in high regard. She is considered part of the social elite, often accompanying powerful and wealthy people, all of whom are vetted by her first. Her service goes well beyond sex, she is trained to nurture the psychological and emotional well-being of her clients. She challenges my world view, and I am reminded that sometimes problems require a complete overhaul of agreed upon values and worldview to solve. Optimism overtakes my heart and I can now see that with some out-of-the-box thinking, there is a solution to even the most complex problems. If only we are brave enough to move out of our comfort zone.

So yes, while these people are considered “outlaws”, they are not bad people. They care about each other and they care about the world. They are making the best of their situation. When people have to break laws to make a decent living, maybe it’s not the people who are wrong, but the laws themselves.

Once again, darkness fills my vision. My sight returns and the world around me is suddenly very colorful. Too colorful; I realize that I am now animated. I am in a psychedelic fantasy world with strange plants and animals dancing around me. They are so diverse and strange that in some instances I cannot tell what is a plant, and what is an animal. A portly old man with a white beard is suddenly standing next to me. He offers me a cup of tea, welcomes me to the Spirit World, and says he has a story to tell me. The Legend of Korra.

He tells me a story of an eternal battle between light and dark. Of good and bad. Of creation and destruction. Of order and chaos. He explains that one cannot exist without the other, that they are both the fundamentals of life. There is no light without dark. As darkness gained power and evil seeped into the hearts of man, one was chosen to carry the light. That one person is called the Avatar. When the avatar dies, a new avatar is born. The most recent avatar is named Korra. The world she has been charged with bringing balance to has changed very quickly in the years prior to her birth. Technology has advanced dramatically and with it, the population has grown significantly.

Powerful people with strong agendas threaten the balance of this world, and it is up to Korra to rectify it. She cannot do it alone however. If she trusts in love and friendship, she may just have a chance.

As the old man's story comes to an end, a ginormous red dragon soars down from the surreal sky, circling around us as the light fades. The old man waves goodbye as the scene fades to black.

____________________________________________________

I wake up and the world around me is my own. I am back to reality but I feel changed. The hopeless feeling that had coiled around my heart these past few months has unraveled and withered away. In it’s place, a spark of hope; like a flower blooming.

The darkness I had felt is showing me where light is required. To rebuild, some things must break down. Mistakes might be made along the way, but redemption is always possible if we are willing to try. Some problems may require solutions that we are not ready for. It might require us to change how we view each other, and how we view ourselves.

I make myself a cup of tea, breathing in it’s simple pleasure. The world outside is not as dark as I had previously thought. Like a phoenix, the old paradigm is bursting into a raging inferno, but in it’s place, a new life will be born. I would like to be there for that, and I would like you to be there for that, so for now, I will stay in isolation.

I may not yet know exactly how to change the world. But at least for now, I know what to watch.

The End

ICYMI: 3 Fantastical Binge-ables for the Stay-At-Home Apocalypse

Battlestar Galactica – Number of episodes: 76

Where to watch: SYFY App

Firefly – Number of episodes: 14

Where to watch: Hulu

The Legend of Korra – Number of episodes: 52

Where to watch: Nickelodeon

*I do not own any of the included photos. No copyright infringement is intended.