Saving Mr. Banks... And Yourself In 2014
I rarely choose to use my blog to promote a movie, but I was completely engrossed with Saving Mr. Banks. I was stirred in ways that I have not been in a long time. The plot of the movie in simple terms is the story of how Walt Disney kept a 20 year promise to his daughters that he would make a movie based on the book, Mary Poppins. To accomplish this feat, however, he has to convince P.L. Travers (aka Helen Goff), the author, to give him the rights to turn the book into a cinematic feature. This proves no small task. I'll stop there.
What captivated me about the movie was the character of P.L. Travers, played brilliantly by Emma Thompson. In Travers we find someone haunted by something from the past, and the issue gets in the way of her true happiness, not to mention limiting her professional success. We see her try a multitude of ways to avoid dealing with the issue, but to no avail. Thankfully, in the movie and in her own real life, she does comes to grips with it and frees herself to be the person she has wanted to be for years.
Please know that I'm not suggesting that everyone of us has some deep dark secret lurking in our subconscious and pulling us down. I do believe, however, that there is some unresolved challenge, estranged relationship, or unfullfilled goal that is stealing valuable mental and emotional real estate that could be better used to think, dream, and to really live. They serve as an almost constant distraction to our ability to focus and be present in the moment.
As we begin 2014, why not make this the year we resolve to do something about these kinds of things? Free ourselves from the hold they have on our well-being and possibly our personal and professional success. I encourage you to start the process by going to see the movie. Then follow the advice of Sheng Yen, who wrote: I follow 4 dictates: Face it, accept it, deal with it, then let it go.
How can you start saving yourself from another moment of frustration, disappointment, or simply a lack of joy in your life? This might be your most important New Year's Resolution of all.
