Gratitude Practice 2020 Day 317: George Bailey and My Very Own Bedford Falls
Gratitude Practice 2020 Day 317: George Bailey and My Very Own Bedford Falls
Grateful for the goodness of George Bailey and for all of the "George Bailey-esk" people in the world. Grateful for the small but mighty change makers of our community…the hard working, good to the core, self-doubting do gooders...you know the ones...those pesky relentless agitators whose efforts not only keep the world spinning but somehow make the world a better place. Grateful for those who dream big and yet set aside those dreams to help others succeed. Grateful for those people in our community who not just remember the details but take courageous action on them. Grateful for those who help facilitate growth and prosperity for the masses AND leverage what small resources they have to help out the individuals who need it the most. Grateful for the loud mouthed advocates and for the quieter more subtle movers and shakers who carefully pull strings and open doors whenever possible. Grateful for those who stand up to the "Mr. Potters" of the world. Grateful for those who build and lift and advocate and champion all the while questioning and balancing and mitigating their own self doubt and worthiness.
Grateful for our yearly viewing of the forever classic "It's a Wonderful Life." This movie gets me thinking every time I see it but this year...this film and it's pensive reflective message really hit home. So many relentless life challenges almost break the man that is George Bailey and yet somehow in the middle of an epic holiday snow storm with the weight of the world on his sharp well dressed shoulders he breaks wide open... snaps...cracks...silently shatters...and yet in the end….like so many real life heros...George Bailey rebounds with greater perspective and clarity as to what matters most. How many times in the last year has this very scene played it's self out in real life?
Grateful for the good people in my orbit... for the gnarly cast of characters equally busy and challenged and balancing all the while teaching and leading and reminding and inspiring me to keep moving forward. In the end...it's Zuzu and her repitive piano practicing...it's sweet ever positive Mary in her ruffled apron, bouncing curls and endless pearls... it's the ever loving yet ever bumbling uncle Billy...it's THAT Violet, that viper-ey temptress vixon....and it's Clarence, who always believes, always reminds, always encourages and finally gets his much deserved angel wings. So many flawed well intended ordinary people doing their best and falling short most of the time...it's the resilience and the extra chances and the quick forgiveness. Grateful for these fictional characters and for my real world people who all mushed together are seeking independent connection and efficacy inside the humanity of a very real Bedford Falls.
Grateful for this wonderful story and these wonderful characters and how this story continues to be wonderfully impactful 56 years later. Grateful for the main and supporting characters of my own little Bedford Falls and how they are teaching me to be more like George Bailey with every exchange, every frustrating disappointment, and every average Tuesday. Tonight, like good old George Bailey, I'm pretty grateful for my people, for our weird little community and for all who make up my wonderful life.