One Liter of Tears

I just watched the first 4 episodes of the Japanese drama 'One Liter of Tears'. The drama portrays the story of a young girl inflicted with an incurable disease called Spinocerebellar Degeneration (Ataxia). The nerve cells responsible for body movement slowly diminish. She will gradually lose her balance, her cordination, and her speech. Eventually, she becomes a soul trapped inside a montionless body until she dies (could be 6-29 years after onset).

Japanese as well as Korean dramas are famous for their heart wrenching tear jerking stories. Especially the main character in One Liter of Tears, she is such a pretty girl with a loving family. She just started high school and has dreams and friends and a crush on a guy. Nothing brings out dramatic difference then to plunge from total happiness to something of a despair.

The audience will probably see how the girl and the family cope with the disease. They will probably show love, family bond, living last days to the fullest, or the will to survive. Perhaps we can all learn some valuable life lessons.

But how long can we retain the courage from TV dramas? Does it really encourage the audience? Or are we just soaked in the emotions until maybe a week, a month later we jump out of it? What will happen if something equally horrible struck me personally? I hardly know how I will react.

What if there is no tomorrow?