What Finch can teach us about being human...

I recently watched the film Finch, starring Tom Hanks. I think I’m a little late to, what I felt, was a beautiful story. 

On the surface, it's a post-apocalyptic film about survival, but underneath it's a deeply moving exploration of what it means to be human.

One moment in particular stayed with me… 

Jeff, the robot, is trying to learn how to navigate the world. He wants clear rules - simple answers about what people do, and why they do it. But each time he thinks he has understood, Finch responds differently to what appears to be the same situation. Jeff is confused and asks why the rules keep changing. 

Finch reflects that human beings are a contradiction. 

We are capable of extraordinary kindness and breathtaking cruelty. We can be generous one moment and selfish the next, brave and terrified, hopeful and despairing. Rather than presenting people as simply good or bad, the film reminds us that we hold all of these possibilities within us.

And as a counsellor, I see this contradiction every day.

People often arrive in therapy believing they shouldn't feel two opposing things at once. They may think loving someone means they can't also feel angry with them. They might believe they should be over a loss while still longing for what they've lost. They can criticise themselves for feeling both strong and vulnerable, confident and insecure.

But perhaps this is simply what it means to be human. A sum of our parts - our contradictions, experiences, values, fears and hopes all existing together. 

Our minds naturally seek certainty and consistency, yet our emotional lives are rarely that neat. We can carry fear alongside courage, sadness alongside gratitude, and hope alongside disappointment. Therapy isn't about removing these contradictions; it's about learning to hold them with greater compassion. 

In Finch, even in a world that has largely fallen apart, the qualities that matter most are not intelligence, survival skills or perfection. They are connection, care, responsibility and love. These are the things that give life meaning.

Perhaps the meaning of being human isn't found in becoming flawless or internally consistent. Perhaps it's found in our willingness to keep choosing kindness despite our imperfections, to stay connected despite our fears, and to care for one another even when life feels uncertain.

In a world that often asks us to have all the answers, perhaps the most human thing we can do is embrace our complexity with curiosity and compassion. 

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