Guardians of the Galaxy, shines light on earth.

I never thought I'd be a superhero person.

Okay, I'm not really... I'm a Guardians of the Galaxy person. My husband finds this hilarious!

Guardians is a superhero series for non-superhero people.

It's absurd and infectious, like, why am I crying about a racoon?

But it's also frighteningly relatable.

This ragtag band of misfits & outcasts somehow holds a mirror up to us and we can't look away.

The trilogy has never held back from heavy human issues but in Vol 3, it shines a light on them in a big way.

About 3/4 into the film it's all going down, literally... a version of earth is about to be blown up and millions of innocent beings will die. Classic superhero plot line, I know.

A few of the team have ditched their orders to 'stay put' and taken matters into their own hands, well-intentioned but oh so ignorant... wow, this is feeling very human nature right now.

So, they go through a low lit passage, smash through a 'do not enter' door and everything suddenly becomes very still. We register an odd sound but don't know what it is. Then the lights slowly fade up, revealing cages and cages of, children.

PAUSE. Let that sink in.

An audible gasp filled the cinema.

It was shocking to us and the characters on screen.

For me, it was 'penny drop' moment. Again.

Sometimes we can get so full of knowledge, shares, and posts we almost become disconnected at times.

We hear a lot about human trafficking.

We do know children are taken from their homes.

We do know children are sold.

We do know children are forced to cross borders, alone.

We do know it is all around us, yes, even in our democratic civilised societies.

But somehow watching a very un-real Hollywood (insane-budget) superhero film made it very, very real, again.

My heart was beating a million miles an hour.

This wasn't just a scene.

I know this isn't a made-up story for millions of people and children.

In the middle of a cinema, my eyes filled with tears and my mind turned to work.

Not my job, or Childhood Rescue, World Vision or any other NGO, but 'our' collective human work.

My work, your work, our work.

Sometimes I feel like a misfit, a rag-tag who wants to join a team to change the world but doesn't really know if I actually can, or how.

Sometimes I need reminding that 'yes' my small part absolutely matters.

If you ever feel that way, stop and press play :)

Let the Guardians shine a light, because we non-superheroes can and must continue to pursue hope, justice, peace and a future where every child can play their rightful part.