Whenever I think my life is getting a tad too hectic, I always try to step back for some badly needed perspective. Sometimes it takes a random watching of a favorite movie to get the job done, like this example that I wrote about back in 2006:
A couple of evenings ago my wife and I were hoping to catch a few minutes of what we call “mindless TV” to wind down our day, and we happened on a cable showing of “Field of Dreams” that had just started. “Field of Dreams” to me is the ultimate “guy” movie, having seen it at the theater back in 1989 and crying my eyes out at the end when the main character Ray Kinsella, played by Kevin Costner (the same Kevin Costner who, as Crash Davis, inspired a couple of posts last week), plays catch with his father’s ghost.
Apparently I’m not alone as a male who was affected by this movie. In Wikipedia, a
psychologist named David Powell is quoted as saying “There’s a 95% tear factor when a group of men watch Field of Dreams… Sports is the archetypal bond between men and their fathers, and for most men the most primitive, important relationship in their lives is with their dads.”
Pretty interesting stuff – but as we watched the movie this time, I picked up on two other things: Having the courage to go after dreams, and the presense of mind to be aware of and appreciate those significant events in our lives as they are happening (aka “being in the moment”).
Think of those voices that Ray heard:
- “if you build it, he will come”
- “go the distance”
- “ease his pain”
He was being compelled to do something totally “out of the box”, and he trusted that instinct despite the absurdity of the task, even though a little doubt crept in when he kept asking his wife if he was crazy. The support of his wife was critical too – having faith put in you by someone so close adds vital fuel to the fire of dream fulfillment.
Then there was the subplot of “Moonlight” Graham (played by the late Burt Lancaster). He never got to bat in the major leagues, although he did get on the field for one inning. Looking back on it 50 years later he said “You know we just don’t recognize the most significant moments of our lives while they’re happening. Back then I thought, well, there’ll be other days. I didn’t realize that that was the only day.” That one hit me harder at age 46 than it did at 29.
So the questions that came out of this viewing for me were: Am I “listening” to the voices within me and finding the courage to really go after my dreams, and am I fully aware of all the things happening in my life that are special or significant, and appreciating them with the perspective that there might not be “other days”?
A lot to chew on, I know – and by the way, I did tear up again at the end (95%, right?). How about everyone else – did this movie “get” you too? And if so, in the same ways, or differently?
Thank goodness for those reminders of the need to listen to the most important person on earth -
Ourselves.
Go the distance!
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I am 46 yrs old and have been very fortunate the last 13yrs as a young man I got mixed in with the wrong crowd. Over the last few yrs I have visited the field where dreams have come true and it still tears me up whenever I think of those times. I am very grateful to the people that are in my life today and who have taken me under their wing to keep me on the right path of life.