Think Like a Monk

My two youngest sisters have been concerned about my well being by recommending self improvement books.  I remember thinking my father didn't benefit from a Dale Carnegie course until I took it and realized it didn't make me perfect, but made me better.  Thanks also to Barb Martin who also suggested I read "Think Like a Monk."

 The author Jay Shetty talks about his life as a monk, but the cover shows a guy with hair.  The explanation is that as a young adult he did live as monk for three years and had his hair shaved off.  He underwent the life style of a monk with meditation, no possessions, early rise, etc.  He learned a lot that served him well when he was advised to re-enter his old world but bringing his new ideas. 

We all want to be better, but we all deal with distraction.  We all have them and they keep us from deciding on priorities and focusing on them or even more basically on who we are.  I can identify with this as I set out to do this blog I found the task too daunting and found lots of excuses to put it off.   I will hi-lite a few points that hit me personally, but readers might respond to others of the many interesting points.

The author quotes Kalidasa, a Sanskrit writer of the 5th century:  "Yesterday is but a dream.  Tomorrow is only a vision.  But today well lived makes every yesterday a dream of happiness, and every tomorrow a vision of hope."  In another passage Shetty suggests you should focus on what you can control, which are the decisions and actions of right now.

Listening to understand what another person is trying to convey is considered a gift by Shetty.  To make the other person feel comfortable you should try to build trust. One way to encourage someone to express themself is a question,  such as "What's on your mind?"

Service is an experience Shetty advocates as giving life meaning and purpose and he gives many examples.  I reflect on my mother who spent much of her time nursing her mother in law and then much time visiting her in two nursing homes.  At one she felt compelled to help out other patients and eventually she was hired, even though she never applied for any job.  After my grandmother died and my parents moved, my mother did apply for a similar position and was accepted.  Money was a factor, but it was something she genuinely felt joy doing and gave her a feeling of purpose.

Meditation is something I have read about and even studied, but found very difficult.  Shetty suggests various ways of tackling it and what to expect.  Breathing is an integral part of a monk's existence, but it is also something we tend to take for granted.  In the chaos we live in it too often seems we react without fully thinking.  A deep breath before saying something can make a big difference.

One concept that I had taken up was that the next day starts the night before.  Thanks for reminding me.  When I adopted the idea it was to make myself more effective/efficient at work--I would lay my clothes out, make my lunch, check my schedule and try to get a good night's sleep to get a good start the next day.  Now I am retired and I have perhaps slacked off a bit, but the next day is still an opportunity to get more out of life.  Try not to stay up too late, focus on a plan for the next day realizing every day is unique and you may have to make adjustments, but without a plan you will just be blown along.

Forgiveness is easy to say, but hard for many of us.  No one is perfect and we all have a past.  We can never really understand what another person has gone through.  If we have learned from our mistakes we should allow others to advance.  Gratitude for where life has placed us and we can be happy. 

Neil deGrasse Tyson "We are all connected to each other biologically.  To the earth chemically.  And to the rest of the universe atomically."

I haven't reached perfection, but would like to think I am better for reading this book.  There are lots of spiritual advisors, lots of self improvement leaders, but few who have taken a monastic life and come back to what might be called normal.  Jay Shetty carried much of the discipline and tools of his former life and is able to explain it to the rest of us with some credibility.  Approach this book with an eagerness to swallow its wisdom and you will find much that can change your life.  You already know some of it, but being reminded helps.  Some perhaps you have not thought of or at least not from a monk's perspective.

For another take on self improvement my youngest sister Jennifer offered:  http://www.therealjohndavidson.com/2018/03/get-your-sht-together.html  A very different perspective, but with its own merits that I like to think pushed me in a better path.

HORSES IN THE MOVIES

Working for The Rider and loving movies it seemed a good idea to re-visit some favorite movies featuring horses and check out some of the missed ones.  A non horse friend, Barb Martin recommended "Secretariat" and that  motivated me to check out more horse movies.

If you watch anything set before 1900 that isn't all indoors you will see horses as that is how people and the goods they wanted got around.  In Westerns horses played more of a supporting role, taken for granted, but every now and then taking a spectacular fall.  Some of the cowboy heroes had their favorite horses, Silver, Trigger, Champion, Diablo, Topper.

Speaking of spectacular falls an interesting movie  (actually made for tv) is "The Englishman's Boy."  Originally a novel by Guy Vander haeghe who had a minor role in the film.  Back in the 1920's westerns were very popular and movie producers were always trying to add excitement.  We watch an action scene being filmed and a number of horses are seen falling supposedly from gunshot.  However we are permitted to see that actually they were tripped by wires and afterwards some of the horses had to be put down.  The reaction of one character to this cruelty became one of the focal points of the movie.  Today there are trainers that coach horses and riders a way to fall without injury.  It is an interesting movie that delves into aboriginal conflicts in western Canada as well as Hollywood westerns.

Secretariat was a quick pick that I had not seen before.  I knew he won the Triple Crown, but not much more.  The set up was a little discouraging (but really isn't that what movies are all about, overcoming adversity?) in the beginning with the decline of a horse owner.  The new owner Penny Chenery Tweedy was really the heroinne as she stuck to her guns when many suggested she sell off her father's estate and horses.  She fired a trainer she felt had a lack of positive attitude.  She ended up hiring an eccentric Canadian, Lucien Laurin and later a Canadian jockey, Ronnie Turcotte.

One of the stories within a story was to do with breeding. Most people seem to value the pedigree of a stallion more than a mare, but Penny felt that the mare was equally important.  Her father set up an unusual breeding program where he got the services of a proven stallion, but instead of paying a big buck he offered two mares and the stallion owner (who in this case was the richest man in the US) his choice of the two foals.  Penny thought the mare with the history of endurance would be the better choice and even though she lost the coin toss she got what she wanted.  Another important detail was raising money by selling breeding shares, something that had not been done before, but raised enough money that she could continue.

The reason the movie was made was that Secretariat did in fact win the Triple Crown, after a little bit of drama.  The movie reminded us that Secretariat set record times in doing so and went on to return the investment many times over.

The Black Stallion is a fictional account and admittedly improbable, but  a more touching movie.  We are introduced to a wild horse being harshly handled on board a ship.  A young boy attempts to befriend the horse, but is rebuffed by handlers.  A shipwreck sees the stallion and the boy marooned on an island.  Over a period of time they befriend one another.  During this period little is spoken, but much communication occurs.  To me this was the most wondrous part of the movie (and one of the best ever) with a combination of riding in the sea and what they tag as water ballet.  Music by Carmine Coppola accompanying the water ballet is very attuned to the mood.   A very beautiful setting which in reality is in Sardinia.  Kelly Reno, playing the young boy was very believable as the role required someone who had a lot of experience around horses from a very young age.  He was from Texas and started riding very young.

The second half of the movie gets back to the racetrack.  The young boy stumbles on Mickey Rooney, a horse trainer who has stepped aside, but becomes very excited about the Black Stallion.  The climax of course is a stirring victory from way behind.  It was filmed at Fort Erie racetrack which unfortunately has gone through a lot of turmoil involving the casino down the Niagara River.

"The Horse Whisperer" is not only a movie I had seen, but a book I had read and even an event I had watched.  "Breaking horses" was a term I heard when I started selling ads for The Rider, but didn't really comprehend.  I read a book about Monty Roberts and then the novel by Nicholas Sparks and then I actually watched Monty, work with a horse who had never been ridden before.  Monty known as a real horse whisperer was a revelation changing the concept from breaking to "joining up."  I can see his objection to the movie and I can also see why they kept a certain scene in.

Monty's objection to the movie boiled down to the fact that the hero, a supposed horse whisperer at one point used violent means to accomplish his goal.  As I understood the movie there was an emotional element where Robert Redford wanted to impress Kristin Scott Thomas when her husband was about to visit.  The idea was that he was desperate and broke his own rules.  Not a good example of how to gentle a horse, but probably a human trait we all struggle with.  There is contrast between nature as represented by someone who can communicate with horses and modern urban society.

"War Horse" takes us back to WWI.   Mechanical transportation and modern weaponry started to make horses an historical curiosity.  Before Alexander the Great, horses made a critical difference in killing our enemies.  They covered distances much faster than infantry, carried heavy equipment over rough terrain and gave warriors greater leverage from a higher position. As technology advanced horses were no longer the critical difference in a battle.

Steven Spielberg produced and directed "War Horse" based on a book.  A play appeared before the movie and was praised for how they used mechanical devises to simulate horse action without detracting from the dramatic elements of the story.  The movie version was beautifully filmed with lots of violent believable war action and horse movement.  The story was sentimental and captured most of us soft hearted animal lovers with its improbable story line.  

National Velvet helped launch the career of Elizabeth Taylor in 1944.  Mickey Rooney was actually the big name star and here he is playing an ex jockey who helps train a horse for the Grand National Steeplechase.   A young Monty Roberts did stunt riding for Elizabeth Taylor.  In North America we are not used to the steeplechase jumps with ditches and all, but it does add a lot of spice to the action.

As a kind of a throw in I picked up a library DVD titled "The Wild Stallion" which is suitable for 10-12 year old girls.  The best part was a 10 minute special feature of wild horses accompanied only by gentle music.  Very enjoyable.

Horses are beautiful to watch so if any of you readers have suggestions they are more than welcome.

FAVORITE MOVIES OF 2012

Everyone has their own idea of what the best movies are and I can't pretend to be any wiser than any of you.  Movies mentioned indicate my preferences.  Your thoughts are more than welcome in fact it is my hope to check out some of your ideas.  The movies mentioned are movies that I watched in 2012, many of them were made in previous years and come out of over 130 movies.  Many more are deserving of mention, but this is not intended as a list.

Director commentaries and special features often helped me appreciate something I would not have appreciated on my own.  Others think the movie must stand on its own.  Like everything else movies have a context and if you don't understand the context you will not fully appreciate the movie.

There is still a foreign language bias in my preferences and that means there are more choices than time.  Years ago it was common advice not to invest your money in any one country as it might not be safe.  Watching foreign movies doesn't mean that Hollywood is no good, but rather that there are wonderful ideas out there and you would be foolish not to enjoy them.  Like foreign foods they will add spice to your life.

Let's start off with the English speaking movies.

George Clooney figured in two I enjoyed, "The Descendents" (directed by Alexander Payne who also wrote the screenplay after winning Oscar for Sideways) was a family drama where a father draws his two daughters back into the fold while also deciding on a family heritage.

"Ides of March" was directed by George as well as playing one of the lead characters.  George seems to have a cynical view of politics which I share to some degree.  The movie has a few twists and has excellent acting by George, Ryan Gosling, Paul Giamatti and Paul Seymour Hoffman.

"J Edgar," (directed by Clint Eastwood) was recommended to me by one of my wife's closest friends, Barb Martin.  It was a fascinating character study of a man who liked to take credit for things he didn't actually do.  Still he was a skillful manipulator with a strong impact on American history.

"The Debt" (directed by John Madden) had two sets of actors to play younger and older versions of the same people.  It is a cover up thriller type of movie very well done.  Helen Mirren plays a key role.

"Water for Elephants," (directed by Francis Lawrence) was a drama played out on a Depression era circus background.  One thing I remember is that Robert Pattinson is more than a teenage idol.  An enjoyable movie.

"People Like Us" ( directedby Alex Kurtzman also writer, with music by a favorite Bollywood composer, A R Rahman).   Apparently the director had gone through a similar experience as the lead male actor and probably that helps give a feeling of authenticity. Chris Pine, Elizabeth Banks and Michelle Pfeiffer all give effective performances.

Filmed in 2009 "Agora", an English speaking film directed by a Spaniard, Alejandro Amenabar got my attention.  The movie stars Rachel Weisz in a woman centric role.  The director was very fascinating as he explained in a special feature that he had wanted to do something that involved astronomy and ended up setting his story in ancient Alexandria focusing on a woman scientist.  Based on fact, but not necessarily 100% factual the director demonstrated how some ancients may have deduced that the earth goes around the sun and even that it uses an elliptical orbit.  Alejandro also co-wrote the script and has written the music for several movies.  An earlier movie of his that impressed me was "Abre Los Ojos" re-written by him as "Vanilla Sky".  Someone to watch out for.

One classic I watched (for the first time) was "Unforgiven."   Directed by Clint Eastwood.  It was numbing.  It was crude and brutal, but in a very realistic sobering manner.  Attitudes were stripped to their cores.  Crudity was brought out as part of every day life.  It was well worth viewing, but you need to have a strong stomach and be open minded.

"The Maltese Falcon" was a classic I had seen before, but was able to take a closer look at.  Black and white movies seem too old fashioned, but they perhaps should be judged by how well they used their more limited resources.  I have always felt the key factor in a movie is the story.  Actors enhance it and directors are the key resource managers.  Technology can sometimes take over and distract from the story. I understand this was the first movie that John Huston directed.  This movie helped Humphrey Bogart elevate himself to a higher level of stardom.  An enjoyable movie.  Just before Christmas I watched "The African Queen" again directed by John Huston, starring Humphrey Bogard and Katherine Hepburn with excellent cinematography.  All around very enjoyable..

One of the last movies of the year for me was from a childhood memory, "Captain Blood".  I had first watched it with my father who was an Errol Flynn fan (and I suspect like myself also an Olivia de Havilland fan).   Later I watched it in stages with my young son Michael while waiting for school.  It was one of the first movies with music by Erich Korngold.  It might look a bit dated, but I loved it when I first saw it and it still gave me a thrill during the holidays.

A strange category with just one entry, "The Artist".  It is English, but it is subtitled.  It justifies the fuss.  One line in there was "mugging", implying without words actors tended to over act.  Some truth to that, but watching the movie it was interesting how they captured the mood without spoken words.  The acting was different, but the emotions came through loud and clear with the two French leads excellent.  A wonderful collaborative effort between French and American staff.   The cinematography was also noteworthy, and perhaps not noticed because in black and white.  Michel Hazanavicius directed it.

If you can't be bothered with subtitles the rest of this blog is like a tease.  You will be tempted, but you might get headaches or eyestrain or you will be forced to concentrate more than usual.  If you give in to the temptation you just might feel you have discovered a brand new joy in life.  The next three listed are my favorite three of the year.

Perhaps my favorite movie overall of the year was "A Separation."  In North America one gets used to thinking of Iran as a backward nation filled with fanatics.  This movie shows they are civilized and have the same sorts of personal tensions we are familiar with.  The story has mysterious elements, but I would emphasize the personal dynamics are done much better than standard movie fare.  The director set out to give the movie a documentary feel and succeeded.  The movie had to work around censors.  The writer and director (and his daughter played I would say the very significant third lead) was Asghar Farhadi who had to deal with Iranian censors and is not really appreciated by Iranian authorities.

Another top favorite is "The Intouchables" from France.  I assumed it wouldn't be shown at commercial theatres in my area, but it was picked up by the Art Gallery of Hamilton film fest.  Francois Cluzet plays a paraplegic in contrast to a previous role in an action movie, "Tell No One."  Omar Sy plays a cultural contrast.  The two give different pictures of modern Paris, the one very elegant and the other more desperate.  The story, based on real lives is funny in unanticipated details and uplifting.  The two characters at opposite ends of both wealth and health helped each other squeeze more out of life.   Directed and written by the team of Oliver Nakache and Eric Toleando.

From Bollywood, one that totally fooled me was "Kahaani".  It wasn't so much that the killer was a surprise, but the whole setup was in line with "Sixth Sense" or the "Usual Suspects" and for most of you this description will not spoil it.  Watching Vidya Balan, even playing an 8 month pregnant wife is one of life's pleasures.  The movie steadily tightens the suspense, but you are not really prepared for the resolution.  The most moving music is at the very end during the credits with religious overtones sung by Amitabh Bachchan, someone who I respect, but had not realized he sang.  Directed by Sujoy Ghosh.

"Barfi" was confusing to me at first.  The trailer indicates there would be a lot of comedy and there certainly was.  Also there would be some sort of love triangle and there was.  In many reviews at IMDB there seemed a reluctance to give out plot details and I now appreciate why they felt that way.  The movie is really about  relationships and was much deeper and richer than I anticipated.  Music played a strong role as it does in most Bollywood movies, but not in its familiar form.  The presentation is different with high reliance on flashbacks.  Directed by Anurag Basu.

"Don 2," heavy on plot, action and special effects was enjoyable. Filmed in Malaysia and Germany with wonderful cinematography.  The plot was convoluted keeping you on your toes.  Shah Rukh Khan showed he is more than just a romantic hero.  Directed by Farhan Akhtar.

"Stanley Ka Dabba" caught me off guard.  I had the idea it was a children's movie and it proceeded in many ways like I expected.  But towards the end I realized it wasn't a chidren's movie, but deeply concerned with education and a social problem in India.  Checking the special features I learned that it was filmed after a series of special classes initially without a script and very low budget.  The brain behind it was Amole Gupte who was also involved with "Taare par Zameen" another excellent movie that focused on an education issue.

Also watched a Bollywood classic, "Sholay".  I am so used to seeing Amitabh Bachchan as a strong father figure I didn't appreciate he got started as a young macho star.  It was very action packed from beginning to end with a few surprises along the way.  Directed by Romesh Sippy.

Canadian movie, 'Monsieur Lazhar.'  Also up for Oscar with "A Separation".  A very good movie, based on a one person play.  It fooled me into thinking they might have a tidy happy ending, but did have a realistic one.  For 2011 I felt "Incendies" was the best film I got to watch.  After watching "Monsieur Lazhar" I followed up an earlier movie of director/writer Philip  Falardeau, "Congorama" and was very impressed with its subtlety.  This year the best Canadian film and one of the best overall was "Monsieur Lazhar" which just demonstrates the strength of Quebec in international movies.

A Dutch film of 2011, "Bride Flight" was interesting following some Dutch women (and one man) headed to New Zealand after the war.  A soap opera plot, but well done and some wonderful scenery in New Zealand.   Directed by Ben Sombogaart.

"Headhunters" from Norway was one that interested me as I had just discovered the original author, Jo Nesbo.  They did an excellent job of dealing with Hollywood standards on a paltry Norwegian budget.

A recent French classic, "A Very Long Engagement" directed by Jean-Pierre Jeunnot who had done the more famous "Amelie" also with Audrey Tautou.  In this movie which was a lot more complex than I had imagined I was surprised to see Jodie Foster in a French speaking role.  Marion Cottilard who is becoming one of my favorites also had a signficant role.

Other movies worthy of watching came from Sweden, Turkey, Czech Republic, Bulgaria, Argentina, and Brazil.

  

"El Mariachi" has become a classic. Originally intended for the Mexican video market with a $7,000 budget it drew attention at the Sundance festival.  It is a reasonably entertaining action film, but more entertaining was the director, Robert Rodiguez's commentary where he explained in almost every scene how he kept the cost down.  Most of the actors were not paid, the scenery was taken as it was found, props were improvised and the film was carefully monitored as they couldn't afford re-takes.

Looking forward to:  Life of Pi, Talaash, Lincoln, Cloud Atlas, Midnight's Children, Rust and Bone that have released in 2012.  I also plan to watch a number of classics, movies that told a meaningful story without all the modern technology.

If I didn't mention one of your favorites tell me and also why you liked it.  For my favourites of 2011 check outhttp://www.therealjohndavidson.com/2012/01/movies-i-enjoyed-in-2011.html