Olivia Pierce: Silver Linings

On the Simple Mom blog, guest blogger Corey Allan recently wrote a piece titled How to Live a Better Story (thanks to Janika Dillon for flagging).  Allan starts his post with, "One of the many pitfalls that lead to a monotonous life is the failure to discover the story you’re living within. In other words, "If your life were a movie, would you want to go see it?” 

He continues, "according to the guru of story Robert McKee, there are three elements that must be present in order for a story to be good.

1. There has to be a main character you care about.
2. There has to be some sort of conflict.
3. There has to be a climactic ending."

***

A movie I want to see is the life of 12 year-old Olivia Pierce.

On Silver Linings, a blog co-authored by Olivia, and her mother Michele Pierce, they write:

Olivia is a happy, healthy 12-year-old who, in the spring of 2010, was looking forward to her upcoming ballet recital and 6th grade graduation from Summit Montessori.  In mid-April, shortly before a trip to Tokyo, she started to complain about an on-and-off pain in her leg. A visit to the pediatrician suggested Osgood-Schlatter’s Disease, a common overuse injury in adolescents. Olivia took it easy on her leg and went on to perform beautifully in her spring ballet recital. A few weeks later she developed a bump on her shin, and two days before her graduation, X-rays and an MRI showed a tumor that was later confirmed as osteosarcoma.

Michele and Olivia have started Silver Linings to chronicle Olivia's story, to make meaning of her life.  I'm going to click through, and leave a comment, letting Olivia know I'm watching her movie, that I'm rooting for her.

I hope you will too!

***

Any other thoughts?

One way to bring action into our life (and marriage) movie is to ask 'What if?' questions, Allan writes. Olivia and her family don't need to ask this question.  The question showed up, and plopped itself right on their front door.  If that hasn't happened to you, what is your 'What if?' question?

I'll go first. 

Top of mind.  Stream of consciousness. 

What if I really got serious about venture capital, of finding a way to incubate and fund early stage businesses, with an emphasis on those owned by women? 

You? 

Comments

[Jennifer]

You would change the world Whitney. That's what.

My movie might be entertaining, even hysterically funny. I just don't think it is Oscar material. My 'what if' would be a variation on: "what would happen if I stop letting myself be cast in B-comedies and went for action/adventure or drama?" It could be great, or disastrous. The question is how to fight type casting when you already have a pretty good gig?

[Stephanie]

Thanks for sharing Olivia's story. I'm rooting for her!

I love your idea - I can't even begin to imagine how many lives that could impact.

My what-if has just sort of begun. I've decided to start my own cooperative preschool. Just teeny tiny and with some friends at first. But it is the right time and place for my family.

[Amy Jo]

You're already changing the world, Whitney, in a microcosm way now. I know I need to begin asking more questions!

[Erik Orton]

Okay, so this may be a bit of a tangent, but you asked for Top of Mind/Stream of Consciouness. Here goes: Robert McKee's book "Story" is amazing. I believe the reason we tell stories is to understand ourselves better; what better reason to examine our own story. Sometimes I like to imagine how "I", the hero of my own story, overcomes the odds and fears before me to achieve the great and noble purpose for which I am striving. I find this to be a very difficult exercise. I think it's hard to see ourselves as heroes, even in a literary sense, let alone a "real" sense.

John Steinbeck, when he accepted the Pultizer Prize, said "only the human heart in conflict with itself [is] worth writing about". I think, if we're all honest with ourselves, we will acknowledge that we have at least a little conflict in our hearts. Not animosity toward others, but perhaps just a gap between what we hope for and what we have, or what we wished we did and what we actually did.

I suppose that's why most stories, whether comedy or tragedy, are about redemption. How can we redeem ourselves and help otherse redeem themselves? Because that's what we all need. I think that is the resolution that comes after the climax/crucible of any story.

So I guess I want to tell stories :)