I’m using my daily thoughts and encounters to discover as many things as possible which bring together, rather than divide, our various belief systems and cultures.
I realised a few years ago that I had not watched enough ‘classic’ films. Mystified whenever conversations turned to the merits of The Godfather, High Noon or Brief Encounter, I decided to put things right. Since then, I’ve been pleasantly surprised by the number of cinematic gems from down the years, including It’s A Wonderful Life, which I saw recently.
This film must have been quite a revelation in its time, dealing with orthodox film themes such as greed, retribution and triumph over adversity alongside unusual ones like angels, time travel and alternative realities. Of course, the selling point of the film is that the central character, in despair after his nemesis exploits a stroke of misfortune, is stopped from thoughts of suicide by an angel who shows him what life would be like for his friends and family if he had never been born.
At the end, I was left thinking that such an exercise could do us all some good. Whether in good or bad ways, the stark reminder that our lives touch and influence so many others is an important thing to remember. What if I had never been born? Would I find as many people as James Stewart did whose lives would have been worse off in some way? Have I saved anyone from anything? Saved anyone’s life?
I don’t know. But, more importantly, what about those I have wronged? There must be plenty of those. Sure, there are those I have been openly mean to, or deceived. But also, how many have I come into just fleeting contact with, and upset somehow because I was in a bad mood, or did something clumsy or stupid which they had to bear the consequences of later?
OK, so maybe a full analysis with a bunch of people on two sides of a tipping scale could prove to be slightly depressing. But an example of each would be highly useful. None of us should forget the effects our actions have on those we know, those we love, those we hate, those we pass in the street, those we’ll never meet.
Does this mean we should look back on our lives and hate ourselves for hurting others? No, of course not. Perhaps the last person I hurt grew stronger because of it, and achieved something they otherwise would not have. And I’m certainly not suggesting that banging your head on something and then going to the shop next door with a look of thunder on your face will make anyone who sees you feel like topping themselves. It’s not all doom and gloom.
Let’s just be aware of one thing. That, as a philosopher once pointed out, we are not islands. We each interact with each other in ways we cannot necessarily foresee or observe. Let’s be aware of that – and let’s be thankful for the positives that those around us give to us too.
Thanks for listening, and take care.
