Education in Movies

This past week I learned how valuable the media can be in education. I had to create a presentation on Posttraumatic Stress Disorder for my psychology class. In order to make our project more interesting we decided to include some movie clips that demonstrate someone with symptoms of PTSD. Our most valuable clip came from the movie American Sniper, a true story about a man named Chris Kyle who was one of the best snipers in U.S. military history. As I watched the clip and various others that we found, I realized that through movies I am able to witness things that I would not normally see in my own life. I have never known someone with PTSD, nor have I ever seen the symptoms of it. Through movies I was able to see what someone with PTSD looks like and what it is that they actually go through. Of course movies tend to dramatize; however, they can still give more of a perspective on things. I am grateful that through movies I am able to see new places, new experiences, and get a closer look at what it's like to be someone completely different than who I am.

The Martian: Overcoming Trials

Last week I saw the movie The Martian. The movie is about an astronaut who is stranded on Mars after he is separated from his team during a massive storm. The team assumes that Mark Watney is dead, and they decide to leave the planet. Realizing that it would take years before others could save him, Watney takes action to survive and make contact with NASA to help bring him home. The majority of the movie follows Watney’s attempts to grow food and scavenge parts of previous missions to survive. I found this movie both entertaining and inspiring. What impressed me the most was Watney’s proactive and positive attitude toward his situation. It would have been easy to get discouraged and give up hope trying to survive, but he immediately took action and found ways to be productive with his time. On top of it all, he still managed to keep a positive attitude and even find the humor in his situation. I think we can all learn from Mark Watney’s example. We will all be faced with different challenges during our lives that are out of our control, but we do have control over how we react to those situations. We can choose to get discouraged and give up hope, or we can choose to be proactive and make the best of our situation. In the end, it was his proactive attitude that saved Watney’s life. I hope that I can face challenges in my life with the same determination to overcome and still be happy in the process.

Leslie and Ben

When I started watching Parks and Rec last November I was hooked. I fell in love with the characters and the unique and hilarious way they each react to the daily struggles of working for the local Parks Department. I became especially intrigued when Leslie Knope is introduced to Ben Wyatt, a visiting state auditor that later becomes a permanent character of the show. At first Leslie and Ben butt heads, but as they work together they eventually fall in love. That is not to say that the road to happiness for Leslie and Ben is easy. When Leslie decides to run for city council they break up because the scandal of dating a fellow employee could ruin her campaign. Ben resigns from his position at the Parks Department and they get back together during Leslie’s campaign, but after Leslie wins Ben accepts a job in Washington D.C. For a while they date long distance, which definitely takes its toll on their relationship. Leslie and Ben’s relationship is full of obstacles, but what I love about them is that they choose to make it work. Ben gets offered a job to run another campaign in Florida, but he declines the offer and goes back to Pawnee, Indiana to propose to Leslie. Ben realizes that his relationship with Leslie is more important to him than anything else. I will admit, I got a little emotional watching this touching scene. I think there is a lot we can learn from Ben and Leslie. As a college student, I have seen and personally experienced many obstacles related to marriage and dating relationships. What I have learned is that in order to have a successful relationship, I have to be flexible and willing to sacrifice. With any relationship there will be challenges, but it is up to me whether or not I will keep my relationship as a top priority. I hope that I can keep this perspective in my dating relationships and one day in my marriage as well.

Who am I

Last class caused me to reflect on the songs that have impacted me throughout my life. I thought of one song called, “Who am I” that really helped me during a difficult time of my mission. The work was difficult, and I found myself getting frustrated that I wasn’t being rewarded for my efforts. I was being prideful, and this song made me realize that I needed to forget myself and focus on loving others as Jesus Christ did. As a missionary I experienced a lot of rejection, but this song reminded me that every person I came in contact with was a child of God and that I was no better than they were. It made me want to go out and share the message of God’s love with everyone. It is incredible to me that one song can have such an impact. It also makes me think, if one positive song can do so much good for me, how much damage can one negative song cause? We may not go out and live the lifestyle that is glorified in popular music today, but negative music does not motivate us to be happy, proactive, and charitable. I want to make more of an effort to listen to music that inspires me to be better. I am grateful that through music I can receive revelation and feel God’s presence in my life. 

The Power of Youtube Videos

For this post I've decided to talk about the power of funny Youtube videos. We've all seen them, and we all have that one youtube video that makes us laugh like we're seeing it for the first time. Some of my favorites are BLR's, Boys will be Girls, and (my absolute favorite) my sister's wisdom teeth video. There is something so therapeutic about laughing hysterically, especially late at night with some of my favorite people. The other night I showed my roommates a video of a slightly overweight child dancing like no one's business, and instantly we were all rolling. We always talk about how media hurts our relationships, but I can honestly say that watching that video brought us closer together. This makes me wonder, can quality time be more diverse than just sitting around a campfire or engaging in a deep conversation? Is it possible that just being with others and laughing together can have the same power to bond us together? I don't think anything can match the power of meaningful conversations, but I also believe that experiencing media with others can have a bonding impact. Not only can the media bond us in the moment, but it can continue to bond us every time that Youtube video is brought up in conversation. We will always remember when we stayed up all night watching stupid videos and how fun it was. Additionally, even talking about media can lead into more meaningful conversations. For example, last night I went ice skating with some friends and I got talking to one of the guys in our group. Our conversation started with talking about music and movies. As time went on; however, we got talking about more meaningful things that helped me to know him on a deeper level. I don't think that conversation would have happened if had we not started the conversation talking about media. In talking about media we became more comfortable talking with each other, which led us to open up about ourselves. Of course media use can be taken to the extreme, but when used in the right way and with the right people it can bring us closer together.

Is Media Your Best Friend?

Alright, here it goes. My first blog post EVER! Although this blog is for an assignment, I’m excited for an outlet to express my thoughts and feelings about something that does so profoundly affect my life each day. Media definitely has its pros (I don’t know how I would get through school without it), but we can all agree that it can prevent us from creating and maintaining authentic relationships and experiences. We become so enraptured by our phones, laptops, and other electronic devices that we become completely unaware of what’s going on around us. Heck, I’ve even had media distract me from experiencing other media! For example, the other day I put a movie on the tv, got comfortable on the couch with my laptop in front of me, and then two hours later the movie was over and I didn’t pay attention to any of it. I don’t think I’m the only one that’s had that experience. So yeah, media can be distracting.
We can all think of these little experience when we’ve seen the negative effects of media, but I had an experience earlier this week that opened my eyes a little more to the severity of this issue. I was scrolling through facebook and I came to a post from one of my best friends. Her and I were roommates before our missions and we have remained close ever since. Although school keeps us busy and we don’t live together anymore, we still talk on a pretty regular basis. Her post was about her brother--how after a long hard journey he was finally able to leave on his mission. Her post was long and heart-felt, and it was clear that his departure was an exciting thing for her. It was an inspirational post, but instead of making me feel warm and fuzzy, her post just made me confused. I had never heard about this brother before. In fact, I didn’t even know this brother existed. I didn’t know anything! I wracked my brain trying to think of the times we’ve talking about her family, but I came up empty. There are only two explanations for this--either she told me and I don’t remember it, or she never told me about it except for this time on facebook. Both explanations left me disconcerted. I don’t think there is anything wrong with sharing about your life on facebook, but when it starts taking precedence over our real-life communication with friends and family, it becomes a problem. Then I wonder, what if she told me and I wasn’t paying attention? What if at the moment she told me my phone buzzed and my thoughts immediately turned to who was trying to reach me? What if I was half-heartedly listening while scrolling through my News feed? Bottom line, we can all be better at giving our full love and attention to the people in our lives that matter most.