Bird Box: Fun To Write, Serious To Speak On · 10:19am Jan 16th, 2019
Hello friends!
So glad you made your way to this blog.
I usually try and do a post with my stories the day they're posted so that they have some explanation. Obviously, I'm a wee bit late on this one, so forgive me 
WARNING: WILL CONTAIN SPOILERS FOR THE MOVIE BIRD BOX. IF YOU HAVE NOT SEEN IT, TURN BACK NOW.
The movie Bird Box with Sandra Bullock really struck a chord with me. The first time I watched it though, I admit I didn't see much of the hype. So I felt compelled to go back and watch it again, and that time, it stuck with me like a hearty breakfast. I think it really hit me hard because of two particular points in the story: The points of Motherhood, and the point of what The Creatures make you do.
The theme of motherhood is always very important to me. Finding your fulfillment in that role, enjoying it to the fullest, and writing about it, is incredibly special to me because of how it changed me personally. I won't make this a ramble on that stuff, since I have plenty of previous posts (alliteration, haha) that allude to that. But the take Bird Box had on it intrigued me. Malorie was not in any way immediately tied and drawn to, her kids. She did not dote on them. To help them survive, she raised them with likely minimal affection, and did not even name them. This really captured my attention because it was so vastly different from what I have done with my kids. I'm a super open and emotional person, and it was difficult for me to wrap my mind around how someone could be so distant with their kids. I sort of took it as a challenge, and wrote this from Windy Whistles' (who in this case would be Malorie's) perspective. Then you have Olympia, who is much more like myself. Excited for her pregnancy, her baby, her life in general. But she dies shortly after birth because of an incident with a housemate and The Creatures. And as the story goes on, you see Malorie's changes into a hard ass survivalist to a doting mother. We don't get as much of that as we wish (or at least that I would wish) but it's enough.
The other thing that struck me with Bird Box is that the creatures in the story cause you to commit suicide. This is a very personal thing for me, as I have attempted that three times, and have been hospitalized for ideation of it somewhere close to fourteen times. To see the damage it can cause, especially to others who are loved ones... It's very sobering. There was a twitter thread that came across my facebook feed one day this past week that talked about how the creatures from Bird Box represented mental illness, certain stigmas, and it really smacked me in the face. I was floored. I really wanted to break the stigma from mental illness, like I did with my stories Unseen Angels or Hush, both of which are Schizophrenia based. So this little number ended up popping into existence. I think it will be a good way to explore those issues. Hopefully tackle a lot on the way too. Death, different types of grieving, manifestations of grief, misconceptions about voices in your head. So much potential. I really think that's what drew me in with this.
At it's core, Bird Box is a story of survival, and not just survival in a post-apocalyptic world. It's about surviving your grief, becoming who you thought you could not be, and embracing possibilities. I hope to do all of these things someday. Hopefully this fic will help with that.
Thanks for reading!
I haven’t seen the movie, probably never will, but hey, I’m glad you enjoyed it.