i have to believe that this winter, someone new to snow will pull out a 5 dollar plastic sled and throw themselves down a hill, just to try it.

i think i'm probably lucky to be familiar with sunrises. i live in an area where the lightning bugs dance in their cocktail hours. i take chickadees for granted.

today i saw a tree that had changed to fall colors, and my first reaction was to grimace. i love autumn, but i hate the cold. i don't want it to be winter yet.

but how lucky, to live in a place where the leaves do change color - so bright and vibrant that people make treks from around the world just to look at what i grew-up-with. my mom's friend was a teacher in florida. she used to ask us to mail her an assortment of leaves, just to show her children - to prove to them yes, they really do turn yellow and orange and red.

last year i finally tried pumpkin spice for the first time. someone this year will find a new favorite knitting pattern. someone's favorite band will drop a new album. artists will make things we haven't yet imagined. there will be chalk drawings and magnet poetry and karaoke and recipes and laughing.

[SPOILERS]

It shows that:

- the main male lead and female lead doesn't have to end up together

- endings doesn't have to be tragic or sad to be remarkable

- heroes deserve to be saved too

- people change, and that's okay

- keep the character arc constant throughout different movies

- give villain's minions some character and thoughts. When High Revolutionary's subordinate went against him? And that Ura girl? Amazing.

- some villains can have no sob backstory and justification of what they done and still be a good villain (story-wise), and audience don't need to empathize. It's ok if they just want to cheer heroes as they kick the villain's ass