The Octopus story

I made some new friends when I was in Langkawi. At the beach bar, they were telling me ( with some level of enthusiasm) about a movie called "My Octopus Teacher". I didn't think further about it till one evening, bored with the monotony of the mco, I searched it out on Netflix.

It was a documentary.

A remarkable tale of a filmmaker who lost his mojo, finding solace in the sea, ends up making 'friends' w an octopus in the underwater world. Everyday, he would keep diving into the kelp ocean just to keep familiarity with this sea creature. 
Soon he begins to draw  life lessons in his observations and  relationship with it. The octopus at first suspicious of this 'alien' man, slowly begins to warm to his presence and even responds in curiosity.

After awhile, it became an obsession.

So it must have been horrifying that he would witness a shark attack on his octopus friend.
The ending was a surprise (which I shall not spoil it for you).

The most astounding scene in my mind was that one scene of the octopus resting in his chest, in total  relaxation and trust. (almost like a house pet this wild sea creature).

To me the documentary "Octopus My Teacher is an allegory of the gospel. Many thousands years ago (2021!), God dived into our world, to begin a relationship to humans that was as unlikely and as unthinkable as a man making friends w a sea octopus. (both of different worlds)

Just as the man kept diving into the sea to keep looking for his 'friend', God also keeps  looking for us.

The scars of life ( it lost one tentacle result of the shark attack), are all too familiar. We suffer trauma, loss, pain, disappointments,  etc etc, but we too will survive and be restored to wholeness.

Our human experience is not too different from the octopus.

In the end, the enduring image of a wild sea creature resting ( in total trust) at the chest of an 'alien' man, it depicts where God wants us to be.

Resting in total trust of a God who will be there for us.

If you ever do watch this remarkable documentary, the 'continuity of life' is what the Creator of life had in mind.

We have hope, a reason to believe and the courage to continue.

Because we have a loving God.