Star Trek and Dad

Warning: the following blog may contain some spoilers of the new Star Trek film. I suggest you see the film before reading further, but please, after you do return to this blog and allow me to share my heart with you. If you like spoilers, then by all means, read on!

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I just got home from watching Star Trek in the theaters, and let me tell you, even with the high expectation and excitement I built up before going to see it…. It will not and did not disappoint! It was amazing through and through, I even want to see it again and look forward to buying it on DVD. My only critique is that there simply wasn’t enough, I wanted more; I want a sequel to the prequel!

I know my blogs are designed to be theological in nature, and I’m sure someone will offer some profound philosophical and theological insight as they did to Lord of the Rings and Narnia, but not me and not today. I do however want to share I small unexpected emotional insurgence I experienced during the climax of the film.

The scene was reaching a climatic peak; Spock set his small one man vessel on a collision course with enemy ship, a monster of a ship destroying entire fleets and even planets! Kirk was aboard the enemy vessel alone and terribly outnumbered attempting to rescue the previous captain. The enemy ship had launched an armada of missals to destroy Spock’s little pod… in short, all hope seemed lost.

Just then – and the scene was so incredible it brings a smile to my face even now – the Enterprise dropped out of warp and opened fire on the enemy ship with effects and fire power no other Star Trek movie ever produced.

At that moment, while I watched the orgasmic scene unfold, everything became surreal as I could almost hear my father’s voice as if he had been the one to see it and he was tell me about it fully excited and overjoyed: “Derek, you’re gonna love It! I mean, the Enterprise came out of nowhere guns blazing! It was awesome! I mean, it was like, ‘beam me up Scottie’, it was so cool son. You’re gonna love it.”

Right then and there, while watching Star Trek in the theaters, tears filled my eyes (and again as I type this). It has been a little over three months since my dad passed away and it catches up to me when I least expect it, when I’m surrounded by a hundred and fifty strangers watching a movie with my wife on my shoulder and here I am tearing up at a Star Trek film no less. My dad would have loved that movie, and I would have loved to see it with him.

We need to cherish the people in our lives, make the extra effort and spend the extra time, because when they are gone, all we have left are memories and tears.

What I wouldn’t give to hang out with my dad one more day.

I love you dad, and painfully miss you.

Derek