Aspiration is Life

Hello from the Main Bus Station in Kraków,

This is when this post began, but the lack of synchronization with devices from WordPress seems to have lost it. However, with minimal revision, the post remains relevant. Reflection is a central element of life for me. Recounting, reimagining, reconsidering what has happened, where I have been, and, perhaps most importantly what I learned from it are constant companions. However, before you think I merely live in the past, let me assure you that is not the case, I am always ready to embark on the next adventure or discover the next thing that adds to my own quilt, my tapestry of existence. Earlier in the week when initially writing, while eating dinner with one of my important contacts in Kraków, I learned more about them in a couple hours than I did from days and weeks spent in the past. While some of my impressions of them were only solidified, important pieces of their story were added, making my picture of them more three dimensional, and furthering my admiration of what they have accomplished and who they are.

That sort of adding to the story, the developing of something more complex does justice to the profound individuals most of us really are. We spend so much of our lives rushing about that too often we hardly scratch the surface of the other, missing completely the giftedness of another person. Sometimes it’s because we think we already know; sometimes it is because we are unable or unwilling to invest the time (the unwillingness is selfish for the most part); sometimes it is because we are frightened to do so. Regardless, the consequences of this lack leaves us less complete, more isolated, and too often we do not realize it. Is it simply busyness? That is an easy way to perceive it, but I think it is more complex, and perhaps more insidious. Complexity might seem reasonable, insidiousness sounds a bit more ominous. I think the sort of Machiavellian aspect of this malady, which is what I will argue it is, is we spend too much of our life “going through the motions.” We seldom put the effort we are capable of into something we should, and it relates to all aspects of our life. Certainly there are mitigating factors, but the repercussions matter.

Recently I listened to an interview of the movie director, Michael Mann, actually recorded some years ago (he directed the movie Last of the Mohicans, and others). Being transparent, it is one of my favorite movies (I still remember seeing it in the theater the first time, and I have watched it too many times to count since, including again last night). In this lengthy interview about the movie, he speaks candidly about the amount of work he did before hand, the incredible research into 1757 upstate New York, into the Six Nations, the British and the French military, the building of a set, lighting, music, and the skills needed by both the main and supporting cast of such a complex movie. His attention to every detail, into the minutiae of like the weight in the seam of a uniform was stunning to me. If you have watched the movie, I encourage you to listen to his interview. What caught me, awed me, was his push to achieve something as close to perfection as possible. And yet, while listening to additional interviews with Daniel Day-Lewis and Madeline Stowe, it was evident that his method and attention to his craft is infectious. He gathers people to help achieve that vision, that goal. That takes a special skill. I think it goes back to his philosophy that he wants a life of aspiration, and he does it. Aspiring to go toward the best one can do should be invigorating, it should be motivating, and it can be life-changing.

Even as I approach 70, I wonder what I might do to improve how I go about my life. While in Poland, a precious friend and I were sharing our favorite movies. It was validating to hear that two, and their most loved as one, were the same. One was the movie noted above and the other being Dead Poets Society. I have written about that movie in other posts over the years. Another movie that I find moving, and mostly because of the depiction of the incredible group of people the movie examines: The Last Samurai. Their adherence to a life of Bushido was profoundly moving to me. The “way of the warrior” as a moral compass is more than instructive to me. It is that sort of aspiration that can change someone and influence all they meet. As I find myself pondering travel, improving all I do, imagining how I can make thoughtful changes to my life, I am inspired. While I can feel contentment, I hope to never merely feel something is good enough. Thanks, Dad! That admonishment about being average is well-engraved into my heart and soul.

Going back to my favorite movies, I think it is perhaps the ability for someone to lead, to make a difference to another, to risk out of a sense of justice that connects these movies as well as draws me into their story. The life of Hawkeye as the adopted son of Chingachgook and someone determined to both revere his adopted culture but forge his own life is something to behold. While there is much one can argue from both sides about John Keating, magnificently portrayed by Robin Williams, his care for his students is undeniably strong. Finally, in spite of the sort of White Savior thought behind the using of Tom Cruise’s character, the movie does a profound job of depicting the true nature of the Samurai through the character of Katsumoto, acted profoundly well by Ken Wanatabe. In fact, he would learn his English lines as the movie progressed. Even that provides insight into the hard work done to create a movie and why we are so moved by what we experience through our viewing.

The irony of focusing on something created to understand what moves me toward aspiring to be more is not unnoticed, and most often the scripts are written and developed to sell tickets and make money. That is a simple fact. If you have gone to an AMC theatre post-Covid, Nicole Kidman is reminding us what movies do. They transport us; they suspend reality, which can be momentarily efficacious, but what do we do with the inspiration we might feel. To merely let it pass seems so wasteful to me. I wish to inspire others, to make a difference, and often my position (e.g. pastor, server, bartender, instructor, professor, mentor) has provided an opportunity to do exactly that. And like most, there were moments of success and failure. There are times that I am graciously and painfully aware of both. Aging is a profound equalizer, but also an opportunity to reflect, refocus, and move toward improving how one relates to the other. And yet, even now, I fail to manage that at times (a recent evening was a prime example). However, I can move ahead, always attempting to improve. I admitted that I responded less than I might have. I am not sure the other believes they have any part of the situation, but there is nothing I need to do to convince or explain. That merely continues the difficulty, or so it seems. Aspiring to improve in all circumstances is what I need to do. It is what I hope to do. It returns me to what inspires me, what moves me, what compels me to improve and grow? It comes from reflection on life; it comes from movies that affect my state of mind. It comes from examples of others. The music below is related to the concept of Bushido. Amazing to have such discipline and focus.

Thank you for reading.

Michael