Do you feel the burden of living lately? Life piles on our shoulders more and more each day. Another trip to the hospital. Another lifelong illness. Another loved one suffering in a way that leaves us wordless but bleeding. Another bill we wonder how we’ll pay. As we slouch along with this growing burden, society and culture add more pressure. Stand up straighter! Wash your face cleaner! Didn’t you know you’re supposed to appear composed and perfect? You can’t let anyone see the sagging—physically, emotionally, or metaphorically. You must keep up and prove to all of us how worthy and impressive you are—even though you’re haunted every day by how little you measure up.
In Tim Burton’s stop-motion film Corpse Bride, the land of the dead is a more joyful place than the land of the living—and perhaps for good reason.
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