The Lord of the Rings movies. Based on the epic by J.R.R. Tolkien. We were not as obsessed as some, but my teenage boys and I awaited each December in '01, '02 and '03 with more anticipation than a five year old on Christmas morning. We waited in lines that stretched down the sidewalk to buy tickets. We arrived early at the theater and sat on the floor playing cards until allowed to scramble to find the best seats. We preferred the extended four hour DVD versions to the piddly three hour ones. Even now, eight years later, we occasionally break out our boxed sets of the trilogy, pop some popcorn, and transport ourselves into Middle Earth. I can't explain our fascination, but the movies sparked our imaginations like none before or after.
For Lord of the Rings aficionados, the character of Gollum and his obsession with "The Precious" requires no explanation. For those of you who aren't fans, his fixation with the "Ring of Power" turned him from a happy go lucky River Hobbit into a conniving murderer. The change was incremental, however. Over time, his body atrophied until more skeletal than living. His mind twisted like the journey to Mount Doom. Relationships disappeared from his life. He existed only to posses "The Ring," and so much so that Gollum called it "The Precious," as if the object itself were a living being. He preferred shiny metal to flesh and blood.
The word precious connotes a person or thing that has such infinite value, it cannot be replaced. The value is above monetary compensation. We hear people refer to their loved ones as precious. It can also mean something not to be wasted. It should be treated with great care as in "There was precious little water to be shared among them in the desert." Water in the desert would save your life. An emerald or a ruby would choke you.
Gollum's understanding of what is truly precious in life was distorted. He believed a material object was the center of his happiness. Sometimes we do the same thing. We believe a possession has more value than a person. Sometimes, we even put qualifiers on the person as if he were an object, as if he were a product. Is the person productive? How smart is she? How much money will she make? Is she healthy? Not too sickly? Worth the cost of a surgery or treatment?
Like water in the desert, human life is not to be wasted. It has infinite value. When we invert the formula- when we believe things, or even lifestyles, are more precious than people, we become like Gollum. We atrophy, our minds twist, we prefer the shiny to flesh and blood.
Each individual fetus cannot be replaced. They should be treated with great care. If you agree, think about wearing a Precious Feet lapel pin. The pins depict the true size of the feet of a 10 week old fetus. Do not be afraid to wear one. We must be both sensitive and bold because the true precious are depending on us.
