This week we read parshat Ki Tisa where we find the very famous scene of the Golden Calf. Moses is on Mt. Sinai and the people are anxiously awaiting his return. When he takes longer than they expected, they build a golden calf and worship it. As Moses descends Mt. Sinai he sees the people worshiping this idol (a BIG no-no) and smashes the tablets of the Ten Commandments he was just given in anger. Moses is then instructed to carve another set of tablets. He is instructed to keep the broken set in the ark with the new set. The broken pieces are just as important as the whole, blemish free pair.
There will be many times in our lives where we feel broken. When we feel like the pieces of ourselves are scattered across the floor and nothing can put them together again. Much like the tablets, our broken pieces are nothing to be ashamed of. The make up who we are and are what it means to live a human experience. Our broken pieces are an important part of the story of our lives. If you break a plate and try to put it back together, you may find that teeny-tiny pieces have broken off and make it impossible for us to put the plate together again perfectly. Those little chipped off pieces that make it impossible for us to put ourselves back together perfectly are what remind us that we were once broken and, even more importantly, remind us that we were able to put ourselves back together. Mistakes are human. Feeling “broken” is a normal human experience. We all deserve second chances. Our mistakes do not define us. As a wise person once told me, “Moses broke the first set of tablets, but the second time it all worked out.”
Is it just me, or are all superheroes at least a little bit broken? They all seem to have these tragic backstories and have had to overcome hardships. And yet, these are the people risking their lives to save others and the world. Their pain makes them stronger. While I would love to talk about all of these characters individually, we simply don’t have the time. We will be talking about one in particular, one that has been very popular lately. Any guesses?
Our character stars in what is arguably one of the most popular shows airing currently. That’s right, this week we will be talking about one of the stars of WandaVision; Wanda Maximoff. Before I continue, I want to reassure you that this post will not contain any WandaVision spoilers. I also want to add our usual Marvel warning that all of the following information comes from the MCU movies not the comics because I still have yet to read them. In addition to our usual disclaimer, we want to acknowledge that in the comics Wanda is a Romani Jew but is not currently portrayed as such in the movies. While we recognize this is a representation issue, we will not be focusing on that in this post since we don’t know what the MCU has in store for her character. For this post, we will focus on the MCU version of Wanda; specifically on her emotions, loss, and powers as they are portrayed in the movies.
Throughout all of WandaVision, we see how powerful Wanda is. Whether she realizes it or not. However, I want to take us back to the one movie that Disney+ keeps recommending after every single episode: Avengers: Age of Ultron (movie spoilers ahead). In this movie we really get to see how Wanda’s emotions affect her powers.
In the final battle of the movie, things aren’t looking great. The Avengers are outnumbered and are desperately trying to get the people of Sokovia to safety. Then Pietro Maximoff, Wanda’s twin brother, is killed. Although she isn’t nearby, Wanda can feel it, she can sense what happened. Pietro was all she had left after their parents died. Their life was filled with turmoil and uncertainty, but at least they had each other. Now, Wanda was all alone. In this moment, she has a burst of power like we had never seen before. A heartbroken Wanda drops to her knees and we see her pain turn into power as it radiates all around her.
Wanda has always let her emotions and pain guide her decisions. It’s what brought her to obtain her powers and what helps them grow. It’s quite easy to argue that Wanda is broken. She’s gone through a lot of turmoil. But, does her brokenness make her any weaker or less of a person? Absolutely not. It is her driving force.
Being broken does not make us weak. Almost every one of us is at least a little broken. The only ones who are not are, well, babies who haven’t had the opportunity to experience all that life has to offer yet. Our brokenness does not make us weak. As mentioned in earlier posts, it is our past experiences that shape our outlook on life. We learn and grow from our past, and if we use these experiences, it makes us stronger. Pain and brokenness isn’t weakness; just look at Wanda.
Stay warm, wear a mask, and wash your hands.
Love,
Amanda & Marissa
