07/05/2025
“Storytellers are bridge builders”. These words were written this week by the author Elif Shafak in her substack channel. True and powerful. And for me , a reminder of why I love stories, books and movies so much. I have walked on these bridges countless times. Trying to understand my fellow human beings. At the moment, in this country, I find it very hard to gather the energy to walk on certain bridges that remain enigmas. So today as I have never felt so little desire to celebrate a holiday most Americans don’t understand, I went seeking what real independence felt (at least for me). I found it in the one and only remaining independent movie theater in San Diego (yup, you read this correctly), the Digital Gym Cinema, downtown and affiliated with UCSD. I watched the documentary: Marlee Matlin, Not Alone Anymore. It took my breath away. At a time when this government is attempting to erase minorities and is physically hurting people, this movie is the reminder I needed that the human spirit is strong and difficult to destruct. For two hours I walked on that bridge alongside the deaf community. I know so little about it. But this story made me crave to learn more. This is what storytellers do. They take us out of our comfort zone. They open our eyes. Our hearts. Our ears. They reach for that humanity that is in most of us and that we must continue to seek, protect and elevate.
