So last night as I'm plying the waters of the Ohio river I was struck by this flash of memory. Something about the moment I couldn't put my finger on until this morning when I woke up.
There's a scene at the end of "The Hunt For Red October" that is, admittedly, my favorite because it is so warm, so human. Sean Connery and Alex Baldwin standing on the bridge of the Red October as she's plying the waters of a river, far from the view of satellites, to men from different worlds, sharing their lives under the light of the moon and nothing else. The DOP did a great job of using that quality of light to tell a wonderful story. Ryan (Baldwin) is talking about his grandfather teaching him to fish off the banks of this very river and Captain Ramius (Connery) telling the story of how as a child he too learned how to fish off the banks of a river just like this back home.
Two worlds apart, lives as different from each other as it turns out they are the same, all under the loving embrace of moonlight older than both of them, and their nations, combined and multiplied by a thousand. It is, admittedly one of THE MOST intimate moments of the film and it makes a powerful statement that has obviously stayed with me.
So last night, my brother, sister-in-law, and one of their friends all up on deck, under exactly the same kind of moon. Nearly full, and lighting up the place like daylight (at least for me) and that same intimate quality to it. Pulled the boat in closer to the Aurora Landing side of the river to catch a live band playing on the shore, but the whole time I was entranced by the light. Mind you the band was covering Floyd, and doing a decent job, that of course just added to the mood. So this morning when I woke up, my mind had figured out the light, and tied it up to something else in my head and heart. So I now have an even better, closer moment that kind of light goes with all my own.
Makes me very, very happy.
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