The One Moment

Paris, September 2013.

It's a moody day with drizzle on and off. A young girl from my high school has crashed with me at my apartment in the 18th district and we've meandered around the north of Paris before heading into the city.

It's a quiet Sunday. The city religiously closes in much of the inner quartiers, in memory of a time when Paris was indeed religious. Pigeons flock and balance between the sharp pointed nails atop signs and window sills. The distant clop of a woman in heels echoes up ahead. 

We walk to a little art house cinema whose sign flickers in a hazy neon blue: "Le Brady". The theatre is below the main entry way: a spindly, old iron spiral staircase that descends into darkness. The Sunday film: Frances Ha.

There were so many reasons why I clamoured for this film. Set in modern day, but captured in black and white, it hosted the narrative of a 27 year old woman living in New York who really didn't have everything together. Her awkwardness and lack of achievement in anything expected was celebrated and I identified greatly with the character. 

Come to 2018 and I stumble across my ancient Tumblr blog. I'm having a good chuckle at the little hipster girl I once was, and I find myself face to face with a clip from the film. I found it interesting to watch it again and gleam from it a totally different response backed by the foundation of my new life in Christ: Christ Himself.

The "one moment" that Frances describes later gets played out not between a lover, but between her and her best friend. It's beautifully captured, but I found myself, as I rewatched the clip, thinking of how there are times when I experience this moment with God. 

You see, I can be in the midst of something, talking with someone, or completing a task. And all of a sudden it is as if He catches my attention, and without disengaging from what I'm doing, I acknowledge Him. I can feel Him smile at me from across the room, and we exchange this knowing recognition of our love and appreciation for one another. 

I don't know about you, but I would have to say that this one moment, similar to what Frances describes in the film, is my favourite part of the journey I have with my God. My favourite part of life. It is not overstated, it is not intense, it is simply abiding.