The LOST finale aired 10 years ago on May 23, 2010. It remains, 10 years later, the most beautiful piece of television that I’ve ever seen. It is pure art. Most of you know by now that LOST has impacted my life in a variety of ways. I’ve been fortunate enough to meet countless creators, actors, and actresses from the show. I have plenty of memorabilia and goodies from the show, Juliet remains my favorite character of all-time, Damon Lindelof has deemed me an official “castaway,” and I’ve visited countless filming locations of the show – even getting married at the LOSTie campsite.
LOST doesn’t spoon-feed you. The show wants you to ask questions such as Why are we here? What is our purpose? Can we let go of our past? How does faith play a part in our lives? How does science play a part in our lives? Do we have a destiny or a fate? What happens when you die? What is the point of it all?
LOST is about connection, the love we have for one another. Can we forgive? Can we begin to understand others? What do we owe to each other? It’s the year 2020 and the meaning of LOST is more relevant that ever. We’re all currently strangers in a strange land.
Living together means taking care of your neighbors. It means putting aside greed and selfishness. There’s so many people in our population who are hurting. The poor. The homeless. Minorities. There’s hate everywhere you turn – discrimination in the workplace, the lack of protections for essential workers, laws trying to be passed that harm minorities. Evil is real and it’s out there. Take a look at the news and you’ll find instances of bigotry, discrimination, and murder.
So, what is asked of us now? As we navigate this difficult and new landscape, our priorities shift. Does hair color matter? Do you need that new pair of shoes? Why isn’t your place of work offering protective gear for you? Why do we complain that the unemployed are receiving money when we should be talking about how shameful it is for companies to not pay people living wages? Our country is shook – people are suddenly realizing the evil that lurks all around us. While there’s much that needs to be changed in our society (media reform, schools, prisons, and so much more), right now we all have one thing in common – surviving.
As we know, the characters in LOST change over time. Some find redemption, while others do not. This is life. I’ve never been that fond of the character of Sawyer due to his “Every man for himself” philosophy. Right now, in 2020, this philosophy leads to death. It’s murder. By refusing to wear a mask or refusing to social distance, you’re not loving your neighbor. You’re not putting yourself above others – and guess what? It’s senseless. How entitled, greedy, and hateful do you have to be to simply walk into a store, refusing to wear a mask? You say you love others. You say you love your family. You want to have friends. You want to keep your kids safe. You want to be loved. BUT – you won’t wear a mask because it causes a minor inconvenience? Shame on you.
Jack was right when he said, “If we can’t live together, we’re going to die alone.” With countless deaths occurring over the past few months, and many sick patients indeed dying alone without their family in the room with them, it’s difficult to fathom that some people still refuse to wear masks.
I adore LOST and always will. However, as I’ve said before, fandom means nothing if you don’t apply the lessons you learn to your real life. We can re-watch LOST, re-read The Hunger Games, and enjoy various media all we want and that’s great. While there are some media that’s simply for entertainment, others aren’t. Others ask you to go out and live better lives, take a stand against an injustice, and more.
My wish is for you to not be lost any longer. Find yourself. Find who you are. Work each day to become the person you want to be. I know a thing or two about wearing masks – and trust me, a piece of cloth that covers your mouth and nose doesn’t even count as an inconvenience in my book.
The LOST finale aired 10 years ago on May 23, 2010 and as Juliet wisely said, “It doesn’t matter who we were. It only matters who we are.” I’m a completely different person than I was 10 years ago. Aren’t we all? We’ve all changed – hopefully for the better. Our world faces a pandemic and its once again time to change. The truth? We don’t have another 10 years to do it. It’s time to look inward, take notes, and truly examine the world we live in, the world we wish for, and the world we want to leave behind.
“The most important part of your life was the time that you spent with these people. That’s why all of you are here. Nobody does it alone…you needed all of them and they needed you.”
If you’ve never seen this show, didn’t understand it the first time you watched it, or simply want to visit the island again, now is the time. 10 years later, LOST remains extremely important when it comes to pop culture. It’s currently on Hulu for those of you who are interested.
In honor of the 10-year anniversary, I’m sharing this LOST scene reenactment that my husband and I created when we were in Oahu in 2017.
calebislost 