“Do you think I am an automaton? — a machine without feelings? and can bear to have my morsel of bread snatched from my lips, and my drop of living water dashed from my cup? Do you think, because I am poor, obscure, plain, and little, I am soulless and heartless? You think wrong! — I have as much soul as you — and full as much heart! And if God had gifted me with some beauty and much wealth, I should have made it as hard for you to leave me, as it is now for me to leave you. I am not talking to you now through the medium of custom, conventionalities, nor even of mortal flesh: it is my spirit that addresses your spirit; just as if both had passed through the grave, and we stood at God’s feet, equal — as we are!”― Charlotte Brontë, Jane Eyre
I have a vivid and powerful imagination and prior to having to grow up for babies and husband, I lived in these characters and shorts stories. I breathed novels filled with heroines and stories of pain and triumph beyond my age and understanding and was able to draw so much power and discernment from them. There are times when I am truly channeling a individual story whether biblical or fiction. Whether Joan of Arc or Jane Eyre.
This week Charlotte Bronte’s classic Jane Eyre has been playing on Cinemax and that story, that character, lights my spirit on fire. She was a woman with such compassion and understanding, such forgiveness and intelligence. All the hardship helped to build her strength and character not simply define and ruin her. There is something so dark and intense about a Charlotte Bronte character. Jane is by far one of my favorite female heroines. She loved fiercely and she never compromised or settled, she did not allow herself to be destroyed by pain and disappointment, but simply carved out a living for herself in a world which she knew to be cruel for the most part. Many women could learn a great deal from Jane Eyre
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