Our family went to see How to Train Your Dragon last week. It was the first of the new 3D movies that I have seen. We weren't sure how Emerson would react to the 3D, but we decided to give it a go. He loved it. He was giggling through much of the movie, reaching out and trying to touch what appeared to be right in front of him.
I loved it too. It was awesome to watch, really beautiful. And I loved the story. Spoiler alert: I'm going to discuss the plot, so if you are planning on seeing it and don't want to know stop reading now!
It is the story of a little Viking village that has an ongoing battle with some pesky dragons who they have fought for generations. A young man in the village, Hiccup who we learn is the son of the village chief, is a small, thin lad who has never shown much interest in battling dragons. However, he encounters a dragon, a Night Fury, that he had wounded during a night raid on the village. Through his interaction with the dragon, who he names "Toothless," he learns that the dragons aren't really as ferocious as their reputation and, in fact, learns to train the dragon, allowing him to excel at his training in battling dragons. In addition, he is shown by Toothless where the dragons live and Hiccup discovers that is a great nest of dragons, ruled by a monstrous "queen" dragon to whom they give all of the food they steal or else she kills them.
Because of his new found skills, Hiccup is held in high esteem by the village until, at the end of his training, he is expected to slay a dragon. He cannot do it. This enrages the village and embarrasses his father. The location of the dragon nest is found out and the villagers go to destroy it. However, they are severely outmatched by the enormous, horrible, powerful queen dragon. In the end, the dragons join the fight and together the defeat the queen dragon. The dragons and the Vikings live, as they say, happily ever after--together.
It got me thinking about the assumptions we make about others of different cultures, world views, sexual orientations, and religious persuasions. We can become convinced that the other, whatever the other is, is our enemy and we have to be, at best defensive, and at worst offensive. We have to "destroy the evil doers," or "convert the godless pagans," "confront the homosexual agenda," or, alternately, "fight homophobia."
The Vikings had never considered encountering and learning from the dragons. It was ludicrous. Neither do we consider engaging and learning from those we consider our "enemies." What if we were to live with one another, learn from one another and together fight the darkness and fear that too often compels us to fight one another. As the writer of the letter to the Ephesians recognized, "For we are not fighting against flesh-and-blood enemies, but against evil rulers and authorities of the unseen world, against mighty powers in this dark world, and against evil spirits in the heavenly places." (Ephesians 6:12 NLT)
There is a lot us hapless Hiccups have to offer. I believe it is time to stop fighting the dawning of a new era, to take the risk of engaging one another, and to band together to fight the darkness.
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