In Repair

Our church has started watching a documentary or film once a month in a series we call “Jesus Goes To The Movies.” Our first viewing was last month when we watched The Beauty Academy of Kabul, a moving film about the changes being experienced by Afghan women since the fall of the Taliban. Yesterday, we watched Andrew Jenks, Room 335.

The documentary centers around a nineteen year old man who moved into a long-term care facility in Florida for one month. His initial reason for doing this (other than wanting to do something unique) was because he felt that elderly people should know more about the meaning of life due to the fact that they’ve lived the longest. What actually wound up happening was rather profound - he began to develop friendships with and to care deeply about some of the patients.

When this film was recommended by a very dear lady in our group, I was immediately interested. I knew it would be easy to relate to his experience because of our almost nightly visits to see our neighbor while she was in the nursing home recovering from hip surgery. My initial reaction towards her facility was rather negative, but I soon began to see that there is beauty almost everywhere; sometimes you just have to look a little harder to see it.

The movie turned out to be even better than expected. The patients were charming, wise, and endearing, and it was impossible not to fall in love with each and every one. My favorite was Tammy, a ninety-five year old with incurable happiness. She was determined to brighten the lives of everyone around her, and insisted in one poignant scene that doing so was the reason that we are alive.

Andrew proved to be a kind and generous teenager with a heart of gold. His endeavor is perhaps more important that he can begin to imagine, as it gives us a glimpse of our possible futures, of the harsh realities of life, and of what matters most in the end… love.