Nights in Rodanthe

This is a spoiler, so don't read if you haven't seen the movie or want to.

Anyone who lives on the Gulf Coast
knows what a hurricane is like
and the kind of preparations we have to make.
They were clueless about all of that
in Nights in Rodanthe.
For one thing
you don't build your house in the water.
The storm surge will topple your home
in a New York minute
not to mention the winds!
Every business in Galveston over the water
crumpled like a recycled aluminum can during Hurricane Ike
except the Flagship Hotel.
I'm not sure what happened to it.

And the morning after
you don't get up and walk on a pristine beach.
There is debris
and clutter everywhere!
And it stinks.
In Galveston there were fish
stuck in the chain link fences.

Anyway, Nights in Rodanthe is
about two people going through personal storms.
They end up in a beach house bed and breakfast,
ride through the storm together,
and fall in love in the process.

He is a doctor who has become hardened and cold
and learns the power of confession and redemption.
She has lost herself in a troubled marriage
and finds it again because of his love and support.

The sub plot involves a simple woman
who held all the love and kindness in the world
within her heart.
We never meet her.
She died unexpectedly
during cosmetic surgery
performed by the doctor who is the star of the film.

I'm not sure that she's a Christ figure
because she died inadvertently,
not willingly.
Her sad death
and its profound impact on her family
remind us of Romans 8:28
"We know that all things work together for good
for those who love God,
who are called according to His purpose."
The doctor, his son and his artist lover
may never have found healing had she not died.

It's a little sappy,
but the movie ends with hope,
a reminder that we should look for
and expect wonderful surprises
from our loving and giving God.