In class we talk a lot about the separation of the body and the mind which made me think of where I’ve seen this separation, then amazingly the movie “If I Stay” comes out. “If I Stay” is a recent movie in which the lead characters all get in a car crash and (SPOILER) the daughter is the only one who survives. At that moment after the crash we see that the daughter, Mia, has a literal out of body experience in which she can see her own body laying lifeless on the ground while watching the ambulance take away the rest of her family. Her body gets taken away but her “self” or mind is separate and can see the action that takes place. She is not shown as a ghost or translucent figure but as herself outside of her body. This out of body experience was so interesting to me because the movie emphasized the idea that your mind actually controls your existence. Even though Mia was in critical condition, her “mind” or self could control whether she lived or not. If she fought to stay she could live and if she decided to give up she could just walk into the light, which means she died. Also, it was interesting that the movie strayed away from the idea that medical practice controls us more than we do. The doctors did aid in resuscitating her when she almost gave up but the movie ultimately let her fate in her own hands.

Now I don’t think that in every case of near death that there’s a virtual red button to decide if you live or not but I do appreciate how the movie challenged the idea of the mind and body being completely separate entities while still working for each other. Without the body, the daughter’s thoughts, emotions, and actions weren’t actually real or recognized and it seemed as if she was observing the action but was on a separate plane. On the other hand, without the mind or self, the body lay lifeless, helpless and withdrawn. It showed me that the mind and body both have separate purposes that ultimately come together to form something bigger and great that each individual piece.

Then I wanted to put myself in that situation. What if I almost died in a car crash that killed the rest of my family? Would I still want to live? Could I handle being alone and provide for myself after something like that? The initial thought before watching the movie was of course I want to live. Who wouldn’t want to continue living if given the choice? But after watching the movie, it questioned what really is a whole life or a life worth living? Is it just family, friends or school? Or do we believe there’s a bigger purpose for us being here and alive? It left you with a lot of questions for yourself at the end but it was an absolutely amazing movie and even left some viewers leaving in tears.