The Power of Miracles

I recently finished the first season of Digimon Adventure again and I’ve already started Adventure 02, with Davis front and center (because he’s obnoxious and needs to be the center of attention). But as obnoxious as I found him as a kid, he’s grown to be one of my favorite Digimon characters in recent years. 

Delusional about his soccer prowess and his relationship with Kari, he shouldn’t have been the first choice to lead the second generation of Digi-Destined. He was jealous and impulsive and he let his emotions dictate his actions (geez, maybe I’m more like him than I thought). However, there’s something about him that makes him one of my favorites now. 

In the endgame episodes of Adventure 02, the Digi-Destined faced off against MaloMyotismon. While the other five kids were scared witless, Davis had nothing but wit. And this is where Davis’s unwarranted confidence came in handy:

MaloMyotismon: "I must admit, I'm impressed with your tenacity."

Davis: "Wait till you see my bullheadedness."

MaloMyotismon: "I'm curious to know why my mind illusion was ineffective against you. How can it be that you have no insecurities or unhappiness for it to feed off of?" 

Davis: "What do I have to worry about? I've got my friends, my family, the Digimon. Besides some guy with a letter-opener on his face trying to kill me, I'm happy to say I don't have any problems."

Yeah, Davis is too persistent for his own good. But it’s that persistence that saved the Digi-destined multiple times. For example, it was Davis who refused to give up and leave Ken’s base when he was the Digimon Emperor. Because he refused to leave, he found the Digi-Egg of Miracles and Veemon golden armor digivolved to Magnamon. 

Maybe that’s what miracles take. Persistence. Tenacity. Bull-headedness. Resiliency.

Without digging into the specifics, last year was rough on my mental health. While I never contemplated self-harm (thank goodness) there were plenty of times in which I wanted to give up. Maybe call out sick for a month or something, you know? Fortunately/Unfortunately, sometimes it feels like I’m too resilient for my own good. It’s exhausting to keep trying and to keep getting back up.

But whether in a religious sense or not, miracles don’t come from giving up. Miracles take endurance and faith. Maybe in my case they require a little self-care too. Bull-headed Davis would have never released the Golden Digi-Egg or tripled Veemon’s digivolutions (still bitter that Magnamon didn’t appear in the final battle) if it weren’t for his determination. 

So here we go into a new adventure (the new year and Adventure 02). Time to channel Davis’s bullheadedness as I fight my way into whatever comes next. Maybe even draw inspiration from his Digi-Eggs of Courage and Friendship as well (even if Davis’s courage usually presents more as impulsiveness). Take courage and stick close to loved ones. 

Despite the hate that The Digimon Movie has received from fans over the years, I want to close out with one of my favorite Davis quotes from the movie that reminds me I’m not alone, even when I don’t want to be resilient anymore: