Day 164: I'm free. --The Genie

 I'm free. --The Genie, Aladdin

This comes to us at the end of the movie after a certain someone uses his 3rd wish.

I realize this particular quote is a massive spoiler in itself. I'm pretty sure there's been very few people who have not seen Aladdin in either form (animated or live-action). Therefore, it's going to be today's quote.

"I'm free." is a simple phrase. Yet it has a lot of diffrent subtle meanings. For some, it means they're free to help you in a store. For others it means they can meet a friend or take another shift at work. Sometimes it means one has finally broken free of the chains a toxic relationship has on them. For many years, these were the main things that tiny sentence meant.  In 2014, it took on a more sentimental meaning when several artists created cartoon pieces featuring Robin Williams and his many characters, because Robin had suddenly passed away.

Have you ever wanted to be free of something? Perhaps you've wanted to change your surroundings. Maybe you've wanted to change jobs because you don't like how your boss/es run your workplace. You could even be stuck in a massive traffic jam and wanted to be free of that nightmare. Have you ever felt like you weren't free to make your own choices, like Jasmine? Were you able to finally become free?

 Aladdin said it best "You should be free to make your own choice". No one should ever feel like they don't have a choice or that they don't matter, because they do. We're lucky that we have more freedom to choose what to do, what to wear, where to go, and who to fall in love with now more than ever. Sure it may not feel like it at times, like when we're being told we have to stay home or wear some form of a facial covering to keep us safer because of COVID-19 running amuck,  but we do. We are still free to choose what we do with our spare time and how we will keep each other safe and healthy until the pandemic is over. While we're free to not listen to the new local laws regarding masks (such as Orange County's current mandatory everyone has to wear a mask law) and free to speak our minds, we're not free from the reaction of others (such as being fined for not wearing a mask or people not agreeing with the way you think). Whatever you choose to do or be, I hope you have the full freedom to be able to do or be it.

So until next time, Keep Cooking with Character!