I recently had the opportunity to go see the movie "The Blind Side" with a friend of mine. I had no idea what the movie was about or what I was supposed to expect. All I knew was that Sandra Bullock was in it, she was blonde, and there was alot of hype about the film.
If you don't know anything about the storyline, just stop reading and go see it before it's ruined for you. Seriously, stop reading.
Now, for those of you who know the story, then I don't need to go into much detail about it. The movie was based on a true story about a young black man who gets moved out of his neighborhood in the Projects to the upper class neighborhood on the other side of town. He's transferred to a private, Christian high school with a 100% white population. The main reason he gets moved into this school? His size. With his large stature, the football coach sees success for his team. While "Big Mike" struggles with his grades and finding his 'niche' for football, he's also changing the lives of an upper class family that takes him in. They are very wealthy and very well known with their charities and such. "Big Mike" slowly shows them through his few words and abundant actions what little things they take for granted that he never had. He goes on to eventually play football in college and then gets drafted for the pro-league. All because of the love of a family.
As I left the theatre, my mind was going crazy. This movie was something I needed, not just so I could feel grateful for such an easy life, but it was something so, so much more than that. I can't really describe the feeling in my heart even now, a day later of the impact from the story. In my morals & ethics course this semester, we talk about the projects all the time. Our teacher and some of our classmates grew up in those areas and it's almost expected that the rest of the class knows what the life is like based upon things we've heard or seen in movies, books, tv, news, and so on. "The Blind Side" showed just that. The hardships of drugs, violence, prostitution, alcohol, abuse, theft, and homelessness that linger at every corner. I get scared of spiders and thunderstorms. How sad is that? Never in my life have I truly been scared for my life because of my surroundings. But there are people who wake up every single day worrying about these things. They don't know what is going to happen, who's going to survive, who's going to run away, where they will be staying, what possessions they will have. They have to live in the moments of their lives because they're so afraid that those moments could get cut short in seconds.
Can you imagine living in this kind of neighborhood? Can you imagine living with no family? Living in a place where you really can't trust anybody because everyone is solely fighting for themselves? Tell me, can you even imagine living in a community like this?
I've lived in Nappanee my entire life. Sure I've complained about it before. "It's boring." "There's nothing to do here." "But Mom, I don't WANT to embrace the pace!"...and so on.
I've grown up as an only child and can think about the many times where I've been unhappy with my life. "I don't want to do the dishes, or clean my room, or wash the windows, or mow the lawn. Why couldn't my parents get me the things I actually wanted for my birthday or Christmas? Why didn't my grandma send her check like she always does for Easter and Halloween? I want those clothes and those cd's and those toys and those cool things. Why is my life so awful?!" Yes, I'm ashamed to say that these things have crossed my mind more than once in my lifetime. I've grown up as an unfortunately normal, selfish human being. I hate that. I hate the fact that I've taken so much for granted in my life. Even as I type this, I'm looking around at all sorts of things that I don't need and could survive without. But since I've been blessed with such a great family and life, I have them.
I wish that there was something that I could do for the inner-city youth and less fortunate families. I really think this movie has peeled off a new layer of giving in my heart. I want God to use me and take me wherever He sees fit. I want to be obedient to His calling and His plans for my life. I want to live a life that's not thankful just for a single day of the year, but for every single day that I have, every breath that I am given.
