I want to be Wonderstruck

I desperately want to awaken to the Nearness of God and to be Wonderstruck by Him in all things. Feinberg's book is a wonderful reminder of the fact that God paints the world as He does specifically to show His wonderfulness and how very much He loves us. I find myself being Wonderstruck more each day and to revel in the joy of others being wonderstruck! Just this morning, my husband walked from room to room, window to window throughout our house, enjoying the snow and exclaiming over and over again, "Wow!" I was Wonderstruck by the beauty of the snow, too, but it was so much fun watching my husband as he was Wonderstruck!!!

Inconceivable!!!!

The idea of someone surviving a horrific bear attack such as Hugh Glass did is fascinating beyond the norm. When I first saw the previews for the movie version of THE REVENANT, I was intrigued. If the bear attack was even half as bad as described, I wondered how in the world anyone could possibly survive. And then the men who had been left behind to care for him rob him and leave him for dead! Honestly, though, I found myself empathizing with Bridger and Fitzgerald (the two men who rob and leave Hugh for dead). Think about it: The man they are taking care of has been through a SEVERE bear attack--he has deep gashes on his neck, shoulder, and back--his throat has been laid open--his scalp has been ripped off--there is no way that anyone should have survived such an attack, especially considering the fact that they were out in the wilderness with no doctor and no way to help heal Hugh's wounds. And that brings up another point--they are in the untamed wilderness of the mid-west, hundreds of miles from any civilization. Food was scarce. They couldn't have real fires because fires drew the attention of the local hostiles--typically Indians. It's actually not until Fitzgerald sees Indians while he's hunting that he takes everything he can from Hugh and tells Bridger that they have to run because they'll be killed by the Arikara. If I had seen Hugh's wounds in person, I would have believed that there was no way in the world he could possibly survive. I don't know that I would have left him to die alone. There's a part of me that wonders if it might have been a mercy to kill Hugh and be done with it. The poor man was suffering something awful and there was no way to relieve or help in any way to alleviate his pain. 

Don't hate me for my comments. When you read about the bear attack and Hugh's injuries and the circumstances surrounding the whole situation, tell me that you don't at least have a small bit of understanding why and how anyone might believe that Hugh was DEFINITELY at death's door. 

How in the world did Hugh survive? Against all odds, he survives!! As someone who has had major surgery that opened me up from navel to privates, I know that it is impossible to move around with any level of comfort or ability for WEEKS after. Hugh begins crawling to safety within days of his attack. And less than a month later, he is walking upright and moving as if the bear attack had never even happened. It's his scars that reveal the severity of the bear attack. Worst of all, within just a few short days of having maggots cleaned out of the wounds in his back, he is up and about and even getting on a horse by himself and riding!

How?! What kind of man is able to do that?! Wouldn't he have done more harm than good in moving too much too soon?! 

I guess that's what fascinates me so much about Hugh's story. I've been "torn open" from belly button down and another about six inches across my belly. I KNOW what it's like to have an "open" wound....the pain, how every single movement brings fresh unbearable pain. And I had extreme pain medication to help me get through mine. Hugh has a poltice and a few rough stitches!

Maybe it's just me. Maybe I had such a difficult time healing because my body was already in a weakened state where Hugh was a man of the wilderness--whole, hale, muscular, and quite healthy.

I am going to watch the movie today. I'm honestly wondering if I'm going to be able to watch it. Reading about maggots in a man's back is bad enough; seeing them on screen (or, God forbid, in real life) might be more than I'm able to handle....

Addendum: in just looking at the trailer and other images for the movie version, I am anticipating being disappointed with the movie. The story is incredibly descriptive concerning Hugh's bear attack. In looking at the images of Leonardo Dicaprio, I don't see the scalping or scars running through his beard that are supposed to be there......Was the director more concerned with keeping Leo handsome than he was with following the true story?!