Are You the Main Character?

Last night, my husband and I were watching a movie. I’ve realized that I’m not the easiest when it comes to watching a movie because I’m very empathetic. As I was clutching onto him and hitting him, he laughed and said, “Bae, calm down; they are not going to die because they are the main characters.”

When we watch any good movie, our thought is always, “they can’t die; they are the main characters.” He couldn’t get enough of my antics, but he then asked something profound, that I now ask you, “Are you the main character?”

Even though I was watching a drama disaster movie, I couldn’t help but laugh. I was looking at all the extras in the background, while wondering how much they got paid. There were so many fillers. No matter the screams, horror, and terror, they were still only in the background.

My eyes remained stuck on the main character because the camera never stopped focusing on her. When you think about your own life and all that you are doing, do you fall into the background? Are you taking a back seat to others as they outshine you? Or is the camera directed right at you?

When you are the main character, not only does everyone see you, but it also becomes hard not to acknowledge the importance you bring to everyone’s life. You help everyone else have purpose by just being you. The focus on you is not out of conceit, but pure identification of your leadership capabilities. It can’t be hidden. You don’t just fill space. Instead, you occupy it. No one can forget that you were there.

The difficulty that comes with being the main character is that your downfalls may be publicly displayed. Your mistakes, heartaches, and tragedies are open for everyone to see. What seems like invasion may actually be a testimony. You may wonder, “Why me? Why can’t someone else have the burden of being in the limelight? Why can’t the focus be shifted?”

Simply put, no one else is the main character. If the camera man focused on every single person in the movie, we would begin to lose the story line or the lesson being presented. Having the responsibility of being in the front helps others relate to you and draw inspiration to keep on trying. The importance of the main character is that the story can’t be told without them. They are consistent and always there. Everyone sees them and counts on them. They manage to stand out from the crowd, no matter how much they try to hide.

The main character can face adversity and still provide hope that inspires others to be just as good, if not better. Their triumph is astounding. Their resilience and transparency motivates all who watch them. Like my husband said, the main character doesn’t die. If they do die, it is without cause, the story is without end, and their life is without greatness.

Don’t assume that main characters can only be celebrities and public figures. The main character can be a person who speaks up, fights back, stands firm, loves hard, nurtures gently, and gives back. The one who may not have been captured, but was hard to miss. So, what role do you play? Who are you in your own story?