John Mills and Pluck

Obituaries from both sides of the pond for Sir John Mills are here and here. Mills was a wonderful actor. Like most British performers, he wasn't hung-up on always playing "the right part." He just took gig after gig, the good, the bad, and the otherwise.

You see this approach in other British actors like Michael Caine and Emma Thompson. James Garner and Kevin Bacon are the American actors who most display this penchant for taking on the next job even if it isn't Hamlet and even if the part isn't the starring role.

I admire this. None of us can take star turns everyday. But we can tackle the next thing life puts before us and try to make the best of it. I think that the Brits of Mills' generation would have called it pluck and it's a good thing.

Mills displayed this characteristic not only in his acting career, but more importantly in his personal life. He cared for his wife of more than sixty years after the onset of Alzheimer's Disease and his own worsening blindness.

For me, the one true and boundless source of pluck--the capacity to keep on keepin' on--is God, Who through Jesus Christ promises, "I will never leave you or forsake you." When God has your back, you can take on the next thing, whether it's the starring role or being a support to someone who needs you.