Be Kind

I discovered one of my favorite quotes a few years ago when I saw it stuck to the wall at the entry of my friend, Syd's, bedroom:

"Be kind, for everyone you meet is fighting a hard battle."  - John Watson

Last night, Kaiti and I went to the theatre and watched a movie called "The Way Way Back".  The movie made an impression on both of us and we left feeling really good about life.  We talked for a while about our thoughts related to the movie.   

It was a believable story about a real boy in the real world who is able to cope with his hardships and gain some hope because one person took the time for him.  It was well acted and scripted and did not glamorize or embellish elements of the characters' lives.  It just showed the struggle Duncan was going through and the impact Owen made on him.  It left both myself and Kaiti feeling inspired. 

The thing is... I don't know if I had even heard of the film until I stumbled onto a trailer for it the other day.   Meanwhile, you couldn't turn around at any point in the last several months without seeing the hype for movies like Star Trek, Superman, Iron Man 3, etc... All good films, but none of which approach real life or teach us much about how to live.  It is kind of sad, not very surprising, and serves as a good microcosm for how we approach our lives that these unrealistic, glamorized movies meant to entertain for a couple hours and be forgotten get overly marketed and shoved in our faces, grossing millions in the box offices, while a good, realistic show that inspires us to be better people goes largely unnoticed.  

It is so easy to get caught up in our day to day quests for success, social experiences, fun, and entertainment.  In doing so, we often forget to take the time to be kind.  We never know the long-lasting impact that we can have on people's lives if we just keep our eyes open for those opportunities and decide to care.