Touched by an Angel (1994–2003): Season 6, Episode 17 - Here I Am - full transcript

♪♪

♪♪

You don't like me?
Look at what we're doing.

Let's everybody stop.

Okay, take a look
around you, please.

Look... not at me... No,
I'm not talking about me.

Don't look at me.
Look around you.

Do you see? Is the...
are the lights on?

Are we having a good time?

Are we seeing different
things that we like to see?

Is there anything you find
attractive or unattractive?



All right, everyone,
please stay together.

Come on.

Why do people
come to art museums?

Why do they leave
the flowers outside

and come inside

and look at a
picture of a flower?

Well, they're not
just pictures, baby.

They're works of art.

Well, what's the difference?

Well, you know it's
a work of art when...

What I mean is,
art is... I-I mean...

Andrew's gonna
tell you about art.

Okay, uh... art... is...

a human being's attempt to...



explain his soul to the world.

Ah.

So, if the world never
actually sees the art,

then it isn't really art?

Uh... no, no.

Okay, okay... Art...

is God's way of expressing
Himself through human beings.

Yeah, that's good, that's good.

Keep going.

And, being inspired by God,

the-the, the human beings
want to reflect themselves

and reflect...

Tess, I... I got it. I got it.

Art is in the eye
of the beholder.

For an example, take
this picture Might...

Oh, dear.

It's very, uh... realistic.

Maybe he's trying to
make a statement about...

flight.

Dogs don't fly.

Maybe he... That's
what he's trying to say.

I like it.

It makes me feel something.

I feel sorry for the man,
but I'm excited for the dog,

'cause he's ready to
start on a great adventure.

That's it.

Moving right along.

Now that's a work
of art right there.

All these people passing
each other in a museum...

each has a story; each
could change the other.

If only he'd talk to her,

if only she had sat
down next to him...

A simple decision could
change a life forever.

It's like the whole
world is this giant

kinetic sculpture that's
been set in motion by God.

You know, sometimes, humans
need an angel in their lives

for weeks, even months.

And then, sometimes, they
just bump into an angel one day...

It changes everything.

Like people passing in a museum.

Well, there are three
assignments in these galleries.

Right now, they look
like three strangers.

But once each one
bumps into an angel...

Well, when it's God's canvas,

you never know what the
final picture's gonna be.

♪ When you walk ♪

♪ Down the road ♪

♪ Heavy burden ♪

♪ Heavy load ♪

♪ I will rise ♪

♪ And I will walk with you ♪

♪ I'll walk with you ♪

♪ Till the sun
don't even shine ♪

♪ Walk with you ♪

♪ Every time, I tell you ♪

♪ I'll walk with you ♪

♪ Walk with you ♪

♪ Believe me, I'll
walk with you. ♪

♪♪

How many of you have
ever seen dancers?

Okay, well, a long time ago,

a man named Toulouse-Lautrec

painted this
picture of a dancer.

Now, what is she doing?

Resting.

Good. Does she look tired?

Does she look happy?

She looks like no one
picked her to be on his team.

Okay, Brooke didn't
just see the lady, right?

She saw how the lady felt.

Now, today, when you're
painting your pictures,

I don't want you
to paint things,

I want you to paint feelings.

Get back!

Two feet back!

Keep two feet away
from the artwork, son.

Oh. Sorry.

Morgan, come back over
here to the class, please.

Can't be too
careful with this one.

Mm!

Thomas Buechner.

It is a pretty picture.

Yes, ma'am.

And we want to
keep her that way.

I wonder what she's thinking.

Is she tired, like the dancer,

or is she thinking
about her future?

Could be, ma'am.

She looks curious... tender...

- innocent...
- Uh-huh.

You've got an awful lot of
time to look at this picture.

I've had 30 years.

It's been the best
part of this job.

Ever think you spend too much
time with pictures of people...

and not enough
time with real people?

Ah, Bud!

Are you ready for the party?

Yes, ma'am.

Well, we'll start at 4:45.

We don't want to keep
you on your last day.

I appreciate that.

After 30 years,

you really don't want to
stick around after closing.

30 years.

That's quite a run.

Yes, it was.

Excuse me. Pardon me.

Excuse me. Pardon me.

Can't do that.

Oh, but I was told I
could set up in here.

- You can't...
- Bud, it's okay.

It's part of our new
education program.

It's not educational enough
just to look at the paintings?

These are gifted children.

They have a special
aptitude for art.

Watch.

Hello, children.

Hello!

My name is Mrs. Weinstein
and I'm the museum director.

We're very happy to
have you with us today.

Can anyone tell me what is
special about this painting?

I can.

It's lots of flowers.

Yes.

Anything else?

Yes.

It's the sunlight
on the flowers.

The flowers are all the same,

but the light changes
from there to there.

Yes!

This painter, a man named
Monet, was fascinated by light

and he would paint
the same scene

at different times of the day

to see how light changes
how we see things.

Very good work.

Well, have fun being
busy little artists.

Thank you!

Don't worry. They're gifted.

Yes, ma'am.

Well, we'll see you at 4:45.

Yes, ma'am.

They're throwing you
a retirement party?

Right.

You wake up one morning,

and you realize that,
at 5:00 that night,

your whole life is
going to change forever.

Well, maybe for the better.

You'll have more time
for life and fun and friends.

She's the only
friend I ever needed.

The only friend you ever needed?

Or the only friend you ever had?

Gotcha!

Gotcha!

Excuse me.

No!

Ah...

That's a lovely shade of red.

Jared, get up. Sit over here.

It was an accident.

Not on my watch!

There are no
accidents on my watch!

Not to this painting.

Thank you, ma'am.

I was just in the right
place at the right time.

We were very lucky.

I wouldn't call it that.

Ladies and gentlemen,

we're going to move
your base of operations.

Please step across the hall
and into the contemporary gallery.

I'm so sorry.

It... It won't happen again.

In a modern art gallery, ma'am,

one more splatter won't
make any difference.

Okay, kids, um, let's go.

Come on, get your
things together.

We have to move.

Are you okay?

What do you mean?

Well, something sure
got you going there.

I hope you enjoy the rest
of the museum, ma'am.

What is it?

A bumblebee under a microscope?

Maybe they hung it upside down.

What difference would it make?

Yellow, black...

a little something in between.

Pardon me.

What do you think
that little bump means?

Is it more of the black
or less of the yellow?

You're analyzing.

Don't analyze. Just look.

Come on, Morgan, this way.

Because he saw
something he liked,

what do you think it is?

Why does it have
to be something?

It just is.

There's so much about modern
art I just don't understand.

Modern? There is no modern.

Rembrandt is modern.

There is only art.

But when I don't
understand it...

Well, you're asking
the wrong questions.

Well, what should I ask?

Ask "Does it move me?

"Does it please me?

"Does it make me see
in a way I haven't seen?

Does it make me think in
a way I've never thought?"

I don't know.

Well, if it doesn't,
then it's not art.

That seems a little strict.

Well, it has to be.

Otherwise, anything can
wind up on these walls.

Like this, for example.

You don't like this, then?

This is a miserable painting.

It's an affront to any serious
artist who's ever truly tried

to create something new.

You talk like an
artist yourself.

I am.

Antonio Gaudi.

The Brazilian who is,
no, not related to Gaudi

the Spanish architect.

What kind of paintings

does the Brazilian
Antonio Gaudi paint?

This one.

You like Impressionism?

Um, I love all of 'em.

And I don't know if I like it

as much as, you know,
other stuff, but, uh...

Truth is I just came in
here to get out of the cold.

There's nothing wrong with that.

It's awful out there.

It's raw.

But it's nice to warm
up by some great art.

I love the Impressionists.

They always make me feel so warm

because their
world is so... sunny.

Just filled With light.

Guess they don't live in Queens.

Queens isn't so bad, Constance.

How did you know my name?

Because I know you, Constance...

from the inside out.

I know your heart rate
and your blood pressure

and your bone marrow
cells and your veins

and your ventricles and those
X-rays and those CAT scans.

And those cancerous
cells that are spreading

from your liver
throughout your body.

You know my doctor?

You talked to him?

No.

I know you're dying.

Yes. I just found out today.

How do you know?

I'm the Angel of Death.

I'm sorry. I'm not
feeling very well.

Can you repeat that, please?

I'm an angel,
Constance... sent by God.

I, I really have to go.

It's true, isn't it?

You really are
the... Angel of Death.

"We know the tail is
wagged by the dog,

for the horse is
drawn by the cart."

"But the devil whoops
as he whooped of old,

'It's clever, but is it art?”

I spotted you for a Kipling man.

Military bearing,
stiff upper lip.

I know what I like.

And you like that, huh? It
makes you feel something.

Yes, ma'am.

A little girl in a white
dress with flowers.

She looks right into you.

Like she knows you're there.

No one else does that.

Was I right about the military?

Yes, ma'am.

Vietnam?

Did you see combat?

It's not something
I discuss, ma'am.

30 years in a museum.

You sure picked a good
place not to talk much.

Excuse me, ma'am. I
should check this out.

Where did you come from?
Where did you come from?

Can you give me your...?
Let me have your fax number.

Look, these are real!

Put those back, Jared.

Give me another explanation,

and I will fax you
a better answer.

Of all my paintings,

I have struggled
with this one the most.

Why?

I had no intention when
I painted it, no purpose.

I just felt driven to do it.

Even the little bump
there, I had to include it.

I couldn't even tell you why.

I don't even know
why I painted this thing.

And here it hangs.

The best-known of my work.

It's a cruel joke.

Are all your paintings so...?

Minimal?

Not the early ones.

You know what Picasso said,

"When I was a child, I
could draw like Raphael,

"but it took me a lifetime

to learn how to
draw like a child."

So you can draw
realistically, too?

Any Sunday sidewalk painter can.

Look at me.

What's your name?

Monica.

See, I don't have
an over-education,

so I just trust in God.

- I'll tell you a secret.
- Hmm?

God didn't go to college either.

You know, education may
help you get through this world,

but it's faith that
gets you into the next.

- I do have that.
- Yes.

Wouldn't you know it?

First angel that God sends
me is an Angel of Death.

Am I going to die today?

No, but today's important.

See, God thought that if
you knew right off the bat

there's an angel
watching over you

that you'll be ready for
when we meet again.

This cancer thing's
gonna take a long time?

Yes, I'm afraid it is.

Will it hurt?

Sometimes.

Now that's okay.

I've been hurt before.

Pretty tough woman.

Yes, you are.

That's not what I'm afraid of.

What is it then?

It's my family.

What's gonna happen to them?

How can I leave them?

I sell bagels to these
Wall Street millionaires,

you know, but does
that money rub off?

What am I gonna do when
the medical bills come in?

And what's my family
supposed to do af...

They will mourn a
wonderful woman.

What do I do now?

I don't know what
to do tomorrow.

I don't even know what
to do in the next half hour.

Well, I've got an idea
about the next half hour.

You are surrounded by beauty.

And you need to find peace.

And that's why a lot
of people come here.

So let's take a walk,
look at some paintings.

I guess it couldn't kill me.

Your painting...

Oh, please, keep the head still.

If you painted it, and
you don't know why,

do you suppose, perhaps,
you were inspired?

By what?

By God? By a muse?

I simply paint
because I have to.

I had to paint that.

Just like I have to draw this.

Oh, look... there you are.

That's wonderful.

That's banality.

See, the art is
in the selection,

the simplification.

You take away
everything extraneous,

and you leave just
what is important.

There.

Now that is a little
closer to the bone.

Oh, yes, I can still
see me in there.

I want to capture
something else.

There... there's a kind of...

light in you...
I-I can't... quite...

I want to reach past the image,

and find the essence,

go past the reality
and find the dream.

The truth.

Not the face you have,

but the life you have.

It probably looks like
a child's scrawl to you.

To still see the
world as a child does,

that's your gift.

May I keep this?

They're just sketches.

Failures.

They're all worthless.

Oh, don't say that.

I'm sure there are
wonderful things in here.

What are you doing with this?

Look.

I'm not crazy. I'm not
going to hurt anyone.

I'm just going to
destroy this humiliation.

No, Antonio, you can't do that.

Monica, I come here every day,

and I sit and I watch people,

hoping that just one
will stop and look at this.

And see something...
experience something.

But no one ever feels anything
except the urge to move on.

It has failed to evoke a
single genuine response

other than laughter.

And ridicule.

That doesn't give you the
right to destroy a work of art.

I have painted something
that I can't explain.

Why should I expect
anyone else to?

Because sometimes
God asks us to do things

that we don't understand.

God again.

That questionable source
of my dubious inspiration.

God inspired Michelangelo,
Leonardo, Raphael.

Why not you?

Why not Antonio Gaudi?

Why not your work of art?

That's my whole point, Monica.

It's not art!

It's a mistake, and I am
going to correct that right now.

Please.

Give me just 15 minutes.

15 minutes?

What difference will that make?

15 minutes in the right hands

can make a masterpiece.

Please.

Just 15 minutes.

I see all those
beautiful, happy people.

It hurts.

I'm sorry to hear that.

It makes me think
of all the things

I should've done different.

Like what?

Laugh more.

Took life so serious.

Well, you never
had it that easy.

I'd get so mad if
a plate got broken,

or if a glass got spilled...

I mean, why should I
have gotten so upset?

You know, that's the first
thing that they teach you,

is you don't an; over Sp...

Well, milk costs money.

You didn't have it to waste.

I spent too much time cleaning.

Wish I'd put down that
mop and danced more.

I wish I'd learned
to play the piano.

Never saw the Grand Canyon.

There's still time.

Some.

Maybe.

But... me and my husband

will never have a 50th
wedding anniversary.

And I will never get to see

my baby get married.

And I will never get to hold
my grandchild in my lap.

Constance.

Life is full of nevers.

You never thought
you'd get cancer.

Y-You never thought
you'd walk into this museum.

You never thought
you'd meet an angel.

Whether life is long,

or whether life is short,

you never know what's
going to come next.

Look at that.

Some people love that painting.

Some hate it.

It affects people.

My whole life,
that's all I've wanted.

To get a response.

Do you really need it?

I-Isn't it enough
just to have painted?

Isn't every
painting, at its core,

essentially a declaration,

a statement by the artist
that says, "Here I am."

And you've done that.

You may not know why,
you may not understand how.

You had to express
it, and you did.

"Here I am."

Here I am.

You know what this feels like.

Here I am.

I was a boy in... in Brazil.

In the slums of Rio.

My mother... my
mother was a beauty.

Almond eyes, soft brown skin.

There was always a
place for me on her lap.

Till she got sick.

My father... after she was gone,

he sat on the
porch, day after day.

Staring out at the ocean.

As if that could
give him an answer.

I cried. He stared.

One day I was coming up the
steps to our house, and I fell.

I could hear the
bone in my arm snap.

I hurt desperately,
and I cried, "Papa!

Father! Papa!"

He did nothing.

"Papa! Help me!

"I'm right here.

Here I am!"

He stared out over the ocean.

And I started screaming, "Papa!

"Here I am.

Here I am."

He never took his eyes
off the wide, blue sea.

He never noticed me again.

Nobody has.

Nobody has ever...

stopped for more
than a few seconds.

I have.

And so has God.

I think He likes your painting.

He thinks you're onto something.

Oh? He does?

That's a relief.

You have ten minutes.

Okay.

Tell me about this picture.

Me? Tell you
about this painting?

Yes.

What is it about her
expression that moves you?

It's something in the eyes.

She's holding that bouquet...

and she looks
at me as if to say,

"Is the rest of the world

as beautiful as this?"

I've been here 30 years,

and I still haven't been
able to answer her.

Well, true friends
can be very patient.

She's my only friend.

But Bud, you're gonna
need real friends,

to enjoy retirement.

The last friends I
had were in Vietnam,

and like I said, I
don't talk about that.

You don't talk about Vietnam,

but it's my guess that
you wake up every morning

and the memory of something
that happened there haunts you.

And you can't
wait to walk in here

and look into the
face of this girl

to forget what happened
on the other side of the world.

Yes, ma'am.

Tell me.

Tell me what
happened in Vietnam.

And tell me what this picture

puts out of your head every day.

Ben Tre.

It's in the delta,
near Vinh Long.

3rd Battalion, 60th Infantry.

What happened in Ben Tre?

Nothing.

Why am I telling you this?

I've never told this
story to anyone before.

Bud...

you've been hiding in
this museum for 30 years.

But tonight you're
going to retire,

and you're going
to walk out that door,

and you're not gonna have
any place to hide anymore.

You need to get this all out.

Get it all out now.

We, uh... we made friends

with the Vietnamese kids.

These kids who were
around the base a lot.

We'd have them run errands,

and pay them in rations.

They loved chocolate.

We wanted to show them
what Christmas was like.

Our CO didn't think
it was a good idea.

He told us not to do it, but...

for the first time in my
life, I disobeyed orders.

So, it's Christmas morning.

We were in the chapel,

and all the kids there,
teaching them carols.

They didn't know
what they meant,

but they were happy.

We gave them their presents.

You should have seen them.

Tiny little things holding
the stuffed animals

with chocolate
all over their faces

singing "Jingle Bells"!

So... we're in church.

The kids are singing.

All of a sudden,
the door kicked open

and a hand grenade rolled in.

Everyone screamed.

All the kids holding their
stuffed animals and chocolate

ran out that door straight
into a fusillade of gunfire!

The VC gunned them down
like it was a shooting gallery!

There was nothing I could do.

One minute they were
running; the next minute

there was a splatter of
blood; they were down!

Pouring blood into the mud!

Then there was
nothing but silence.

Just... children...
toys in blood.

So... you see...

it's not safe to be
a friend of mine.

I can't even look
at kids anymore.

Except for her.

She'll never get old.

She'll always stay at
just at that moment...

before innocence disappears.

They can't kill her.

Bud, ten more
minutes till the party.

Okay, I'll do one
final walk-through.

Do you mind if I join you?

Be my guest.

Well, I'll see you
down the hall.

Oh, Mrs. Weinstein, could
you come here, please?

♪♪

I look around at
all these artists.

They've left us

these beautiful, beautiful
things that will live forever,

and I just think, you know,
what have I done with my life?

What difference did
I make in the world?

Can you wait three minutes?

Would God get upset if I left?

You know, I have to go
pick my son up from school.

Oh, you forgot. He's
coming home late today.

Oh, right, yeah.

He went on a field
trip with his class to...

15 minutes. Time is up.

Just a little bit
longer, please.

I'm sorry, Monica.

Whatever miracle you're
waiting for didn't happen.

Oh, no, don't.

Look, get out of my way.

I'm stopping you
from making a mistake.

The miracle, the answer

you've been waiting
for is about to happen,

but that painting has
to be here when it does.

What are you talking about?

There was a reason
you painted this.

As a matter of fact,
there were many reasons,

some of them you
will never know.

But God knows all of them,

and He's bringing them
all together right now.

I believe you... but
I don't know why.

Because I'm speaking the truth.

I am an angel.

An angel?

Yes.

In this museum for a few
moments, an angel has come

into your life to say,
"God exists, Antonio,

and He loves you."

And you exist because
God created you.

And He knows the art you
create is your way of calling home

to the Father and
saying, "Here I am."

Yes... in my way...
my stupid way...

I've tried to tell Him that.

You don't like this painting

because you don't
know why you made it.

God knows because
He inspired you.

But He had a greater plan
than you could ever imagine

that's walking
in here right now.

What are you
doing with that knife?

I painted this,
and I don't like it.

So I'm going to rip it up.

You can't! It's
not finished yet.

Not finished?

Here, I finished it for you.

What is that?

That's what you forgot.

I... I forgot a-a plant?

It's not really
a plant. It's me.

What?

See, this is how I felt
when I was just a little kid.

Just a bump in the ground
that nobody ever noticed.

But my mom, she
said I was like a seed

that God planted.

See? This is the ground.

This is the sunshine,

and sometimes it has to rain.

But if you wait long
enough, you'll start to grow.

See?

I see.

So you needed this
painting to remind you

of what you feel?

Yeah.

And what do you feel?

I feel like... "Hey,
look at me. I grew up.

Here I am."

Yes.

Here I am.

Here... I... am.

Thank you.

You wanted to know what
you've done with your life.

You wanted to know
what you're leaving behind.

He's standing right
there, Constance.

Your son.

That's your masterpiece.

Morgan?

Mom, hey, look what I made.

Oh, yeah.

That's a very beautiful
painting, Morgan.

Your attention, phase.

The museum is now closed.

Please proceed
to the nearest exit.

Come on.

Thank you.

Ladies and gentlemen,
the museum is closed.

Sorry, sir.

I was just leaving.

I've seen what I
came here to see.

Hate to kick you folks out,
but we're just about to...

Bud, Bud, these
are friends of mine.

This is Monica,
and this is Andrew.

- Hi.
- Hi.

Well, in that case,

we're just about to have
a reception around there.

Would you like a piece of cake?

Mmm, that sounds delightful.

Come on.

Oh, my God!

What is this?

Isn't it amazing? It's
my granddaughter.

Who are you?

Amanda Erickson, and that
was me along, long time ago.

That was in your
great-grandmother's front hall.

There was some stairs
that went off that way.

Innocence lives after all.

Bud, this moment of innocence
is frozen in time by paint,

but real people
can't stay frozen.

They've got to get
on with their lives

as God intended.

I'm not very religious.

I'm not talking about religion.

I'm talking about God.

Something very special
is happening here.

And if you'll just
open yourself up to it,

you will realize God is
trying to tell you something.

He loves you, Bud. He cares.

And when you leave here tonight,

you will not be alone.

You've got friends in heaven

and you've got friends in
this place right here right now.

I don't deserve a friend.

Bud, you disobeyed orders
and you gave a Christmas party

for some children 30 years ago,

and you blame yourself

for what happened
to those children.

And you haven't been able
to reach out for a friend since.

It was raining that day.

Rain would have sent
those children inside

one way or another.

And this tragedy would have
happened with or without you.

How did you know that it...?

I just know. Believe
me, I just know.

Now you've been looking
at this painting for 30 years

to keep from
looking at your guilt.

Now the guilt is over,
and the job is done.

So say good-bye
to your painted friend

and say hello
to a real live one.

I'm glad I met you.

Just like bumping into an angel.

Just like that, huh?

You know, we're having
a little party out there.

Would you like some cake?

That's a very pretty picture.

Another day,
another work of art.

Let's go, babies.

The museum is now closed.

Come along, dear.