St. Crispin's Day Speech by beau-foto

Photo Credit: beau-foto

So, I am a person like everyone else. I am a kid (in my own definition, I am only 23) and I am no genius but I am learning and that is life. Right now, I am struggling internally, as all should as they grow. I wanted to share with you a list of things that have affected me in my short 23 years so far, adding a new one to the top of the list.

You see, I just watched a new movie: Capitalism: A love Story. I loved it. It reminded me that I want to be political. It reminded me that things are not all rose-colored glasses. When I say ‘I want to be political’ I am not saying I am putting my name on a ballot somewhere. I am saying it may have a significant impact in my future writing.

Let me get to it then. I don’t want to push my political beliefs (just yet) but I want to share the things that have influenced me and maybe find out what makes you tick.

Capitalism: A Love Story: If you haven’t seen it, it is a good movie. I recommend it highly, though I doubt I need to. My mother is always telling me that I need to write political, that I should be a voice for people my age.

This movie reminds me of the depressing state the United States is in, economically and morally. Capitalism is failing, there are lots of things that need to be fixed. Being a realist, I just hope that our fear and our desperation doesn’t simply push a new and worse situation on us. I want my cake and to eat it too, I want democracy and a good job/good pay/health care, etc.

In the end, the American dream is changing. I hope that the sheep get sheared to become wolves, because I think that is what I am. I am a cute, some what smart girl (I like to think so) but I have teeth. I want to see some fight from the people. No bloodshed, but not laying down and just taking a beating.

Okay: Enough about that. I am just fired up because I just watched it. Great movie that reminds me that I want to do more than write stories, I want to provoke and make people think. That’s what we all want, right?

V for Vendetta:

This movie is another good one. I am a fan of Natalie Portman; I think I have seen most all her movies. This movie, to me, is about fear which is what the government has used to push the masses into a corner for some time. Fear of war, fear of the economy, fear of different seems to be a constant theme.

I will stand behind many beliefs that I have cultivated over my (short) years. (That was a pun, I am short.) I know that it is easy to rise into popularity by picking a scapegoat. It’s classic school yard bully tactics. “He is evil, burn him!” We see this in the witch trials, in the persecution of people for their religious beliefs which is how America was founded to begin with, and now the big witch hunt is about homosexuals.

Personal Note: No matter what you say, rights are rights and we all deserve to be equal. Something to think about if you think that someone should have their rights ‘repealed’ *cough ‘Maine’* Next time…it could happen to you. It’s not about ‘It doesn’t affect me’ because it does. Every time rights are taken away, inequalities are kept the standard; you make it that much easier to have other rights stripped away for one reason or another.

I am sure my mother is going to call me about this; we don’t see eye to eye about equal rights for homosexuals, God love her. It breaks my heart.

V for Vendetta; great movie, still political, equality in rights means for everyone!

Finding Forrester:

This is a great story. This is a ‘kid from the wrong side of the tracks’ kinda story. I love it. If every I think ‘I’m just not THAT good,’ I watch this and remind myself that ANYONE can be a writer and EVERYONE starts from nothing before they become a voice that is heard.

You have to start somewhere.

Lady in the Water:

Lady in the water is a great movie. It’s a fairytale kind of movie, but if you get the real purpose of the movie, it is also political. This is about a writer who writes something that is different, that changes the future and he will ultimately be killed for writing it. I can only hope to write something worth being assassinated over. I want to move the world with my writing.

Green Street Hooligans:

This is a lovely story, kind of a ‘David vs. Goliath’. An aspiring journalist is kicked out of school because of something he didn’t do and he didn’t speak up. He falls into a crowd of underground… ‘Football’ fans (soccer, in the USA) and when they find out he is a journalist, some bad things happen. Ultimately, a good kid ends up dead and the aspiring journalist writes the story, goes back to school and defeats Goliath.

This is a reminder to me that journalists are always seen as evil, no matter their intentions. I get it. I understand that. It also reminds me that every story is significant and if you have seen something, a story, an event, a wrong, anything, it is the job of a writer to write it.

It’s powerful, the pen and paper. I hope that I can tell many stories of many people. I hope that I can do the stories justice and be true to the story as it happened. (That’s right, I am not interested in ONLY fiction)

Great movie. Loved it.

Tae-Bo (Bonus!): It taught me I am strong

This one is easy! It’s number six. I wanted to write on something not political and not about writing, but has still affected me. For those that don’t know, Tae-Bo is a work-out, fighting type exercise that was a big craze when I was a little younger. I think it is still popular, I still have all the ‘hard core bootcamp’ work outs and when I don’t feel so lazy, I entertain them for about ten minutes. I just don’t feel as energetic as I once did .

This ‘movie’ or DVD, it taught me that I am strong. It has come in handy, knowing these moves like my fingers know the keyboard. You never know when you will have to stand on your own two feet and hold your own. Help doesn’t always come which is a lesson I try to incorporate into my novels.

Okay, so the verdict says I am a bit political, I am a big mouth that has no problem speaking against a wrong I see. I love writing and I want to change the world some day, I don’t know how or when, but I try to think of ways every day.

As always, thanks for reading.

I would love to know what has encouraged you to write, what has influenced you and what keeps you going.