I was too young to fully understand the novel when I read it as a pre-teen. The discussions of relativity, scientific theories and methods and how they all could actually be applied to real life… well, in a fantasy version of real life as we know it anyway (but still applies)… most of the concepts went way over my head. Even now I have to tap into that side of my brain I hate using sometimes in order to comprehend parts of this book.
The set-up: The Murrys return in A Wind in the Door. 6-year-old Charles Wallace Murry is having problems in school. Due to the nature and level of his genius, unsurprisingly, neither his teachers nor his classmates appreciate his contributions to class discussions and his sister Meg is worried about him. It becomes clear that it's not his biggest problem, however, as he starts to deteriorate physically. Based upon their scientist mother's tests upon her youngest child, it is concluded that he has mitochondritis… his mitochondria are dying. Meg, her kind-of-boyfriend Calvin along with some other-worldly help must pass tests and travel to unexpected places to save his life, while avoiding the Echthroi, beings that destroy for the sake of destroying (these exist in real life, too). GREAT book... definitely read it, no matter what age you are.
That said, one of the keys to the survival of the characters in the book is learning to love a PART of someone in order to gain a better understanding of that person as a whole. To see who they are beyond the bullshit, the bluster, the façade…
My realization: Before I get angry at other people for their lack of compassion, let me look at me… Too often, I think, I've made assumptions and drawn conclusions about people based upon the evidence placed neatly before me. And I'll give myself a break... I've been burned by people more than once, so I tend to be suspicious and mostly correct. Though I haven't necessarily judged a book by its cover, I might have gotten through only a chapter or two before believing I had it pretty much figured out. It isn't always a bad thing… people who are shallow enough… that might be the whole book for them. Chapter One, Chapter Two, THE END. You might also meet the same basic characters over and over again, different face, different name, same person. And there's a DISCLAIMER: Some people ARE EXACTLY who they seem to be. But not always. Not always. Though a person you've never really cared for may never be your BFF or even your friend, you might be able to at least tolerate them a little better or soften towards them, even if only slightly, if you observe or hear something about them that shows a different side. I think it's important to our evolution as people… seeing the totality of a person (even if in bits and pieces), before completely X'ing them out. I can now look at someone and instead of thinking the "F you" that would generally pop into my mind before an immediate dismissal of that person as a whole, I will instead think, "That guy can be kind of a dick, but he's a great dad to his kids." Or "I really don't like her much because she has such an awful attitude… but she took care of her sick mom for two years." Or even, "He's a jerk most of the time, but I saw him quietly tip that bartender 40 percent." A small thing perhaps, but it's a start…
I love L'Engle. I'm copping this now. Haven't read it in YEARS! I love your insights on this, particularly about seeing the same person many times, whether they're a douche, a boo lover, a sycophant, a liar, a player, whatever, when they show me who they are...I believe them (as Maya Angelou suggests). But you're right it's not good to judge, but you best believe I'm gonna classify, LMAO
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