Thursday 23 August 2012

How do we achieve peace?

Today I had a pretty uneventful day but while I was making my lunch there was a movie on in the background which sounded pretty good so I went into the sitting room and paused it so I could watch it when I was finished with lunch. The movie was called "That's what I am". It is based in 1965 and is about a student (Andy) who like most students will do anything to avoid conflict and ridicule from his classmates. But then a teacher (Mr. Simon) pairs him off with the schools biggest outcast (Stanley) on an important term project. Over the course of the movie Andy discovers that the teacher had a reason for pairing him with Stanley. Andy learns that Stanley is a brilliant, kind, tolerant and decent human being who has more dignity that anyone he had ever encountered. It's a heart warming tale about overcoming bullies and being who you are rather than trying to adhere to the social norm. 

But the one thing that will stand out for me is this wonderful quote. Mr Simon entered a competition to win a car. Each participant had to write in 50 words or less how to achieve peace, Mr Simon did it in 5. "Human Dignity + compassion = peace" I don't know why, but that quote really stuck with me more than anything else that happened in the movie. I am usually quite attentive to movies that are about overcoming adversity and standing up for what you believe in because it is tough to do those things. But after this quote came up I couldn't really focus on the rest of the movie. I was just thinking about how amazing that quote is and how easy it would be for people to be more compassionate and have more dignity. If everyone learned from this quote I think we would be taking a massive step towards peace. I highly recommend this movie. It really makes you think about everything that is happening in the world and your own life. Has anyone else seen this movie? If so what did ye think of it? I would really love to hear peoples opinions on the movie, on how we can achieve peace or even just what they thought of my ramblings. 

Stardansheill o7

Sunday 19 August 2012

Reasons why humanity is awesome

So I haven't really being very good at posting on here lately so I have decided to create a new segment where I post about things that make me so happy to be alive and why humanity is awesome. Lately whenever I watch the news or read a paper it is usually full of sad news stories but every so often there is that one story that you read or see that makes you smile and see why people never give up on things. So I am going to post some of the stories and videos that put a smile on my face. These are only my opinions of the reasons why I think humanity is awesome I would love to hear from you guys as to why you think humanity is awesome or even the opposite. Just leave a comment below.

 I decided that the first post I do on this segment will be about a few videos I found by the Piano guys while stumbling around the internet and literally spent a good 2 hours listening to and perusing the rest of their videos. They have written a lot of their own music but they also cover a lot of classical music. But in my opinion this doesn't make them any less awesome because it still takes a ridiculous amount of talent to cover some classical songs.

I decided to include them in the reasons why humanity is awesome segment because they are so passionate about their music and they play because they love doing it. They have spent countless hours of their lives honing their talents as musicians and have probably thought about giving up many many times while learning, but they never did and they are now amazing and have made a career from something they love. Every time I watch their videos I can't stop smiling. I couldn't even in my wildest dreams even imagine being able to do something like that. The skill involved is immense. People like these guys are truly awesome. And there are plenty of them out there. The internet is full of them. All we have to do is look :)  




Expect to see a few more posts in this segment as I am often stumbling upon amazing stories or even just seeing things in my own personal life that restore my faith in humanity and show that humanity really is awesome. I like to remember that no matter how depressing things can get there is always something out there that will put a smile on your face.

Stardansheill o7