Inspiration

I don't think I've ever been more inspired by a movie than tonight. I rented "The Great Debaters" partly because there was nothing else in Blockbuster that seemed interesting and partly because I have an insatiable craving for movies. I sat down @ my imac and decided to put this movie in first because it seemed like a movie I needed to pay really close attention to (ie. it required more attention than I could give while working on design stuff). So I put the movie in and waited for the heart warming goo to flow out.

As I sat there, I realized the weight of this movie. It is a deep and really heavy movie. It motivates plenty of emotion, either being hate, sadness, pain, or simple discomfort. I hate movies that bring up racism in order to prove that a certain group has done lots of wrong and should still feel bad about it. Those kinds of movies irritate me as much as Al Sharpton or Jesse Jackson do when they are in the news trying to pick apart some instance of wrong doing as a huge racial issue. Not that they aren't right some of the time, but usually they are out to get publicity because the American people have forgotten about them.

"The Great Debaters" is not one of those movies. It has a wealth of intellect and wit that most movies lack now a days. There are emotion filled rants, tearful moments and sad travesties. For every one of those moments, there are three moments that break the human spirit down into a simple, better notion. That mankind has lost the passion that once fed freedom. I sat there listening to young men and women debate over topics that are weightier than tax breaks and campaign ads. It brought about compassion, not sympathy. It stirred desire to see equality, not hatred towards those who have done wrong. I was half through that movie when I picked up my notebook and penned a heart felt response to what mankind has done to itself. I look at this movie, not as a reflection of the past, but as a mirror image of our current situation. We sit back and watch as the world around us falls into a cyclical motion of rising and falling. Not only are we living in racially charged times, where a black presidential candidate stirs voters because of his race, but in a time where there are those around us who can't see past their social class.

I'm not saying I'm going to go out and change the lives of every American. I can't do that. What I can do is understand the struggles others face each day and show compassion to someone who, otherwise, might not see a friendly face. I can step up and show my fellow man how beneficial him being around really is. People need to know there are needed/wanted. People need connection to something more than just a job or a loved one. They need to know that God has reached out His hand towards them in the guise of someone smiling at them or telling them they are great.

This movie was intended to show the will of the human spirit. To show that even though racial tensions were strong, there were a few who stood tall and stood proud. It gave me the will to exercise my civil disobedience. My disobedience to the norm of looking out for myself first and then if I have the time or resources to give help to another. My act of civil disobedience is to reach out to any and all, and give them the hope they are looking for.... My Lord