Thursday 20 March 2014

Movie Night or Life Changing Night?: A Moment of Defenition

I am a young individual. I can’t recall any particularly exciting events that have defined me. But something comes to mind when I think of the things that have been defined by in my life. My ability to enjoy every day. Since this is a way of life, a state of mind, it is hard to pinpoint exactly what moment in my short life that defined this joy. But I am confident that it comes from my upbringing and my inherited sense of humour. Not to mention the earliest memory of shared laughter between my dad and I: the first time we watched Ben Stiller’s Zoolander.

For those of you who have never seen it, Zoolander is a movie about a dim-witted male model named Derek Zoolander. It follows his being brainwashed to kill the Malaysian prime minister by a sinister fashion designer known as Mugatu. The movie has a hilarious cast and a very interesting and creative plot. It has a lot of clever jokes, and a lot of stupid ones. But it’s not the content of this movie that held a defining message. It was the experience of watching it with my dad. See, I couldn’t have been more than ten when I watched this movie for the first time with him. I didn't understand half the jokes, and I couldn’t appreciate the movie’s comedy genius like I can now. But I did know this: my dad was enjoying this movie. whether it was the jokes themselves, their delivery by the actors, or their stupidity, I wanted to enjoy this movie as much as I knew my dad was. I laughed when he laughed. I chose to enjoy that movie. The reason this experience defines who I am today is the realization that we choose our attitudes. I’m not saying being happy is as simple as choosing to do so. But I know that it helps. I found that movie funny back then because I watched it setting myself up to laugh. I find it funny now simply because it is hilarious. But likewise, I enjoy life now by setting myself up to enjoy it. I may not be able to fully appreciate or understand everything that comes my way, but I know that to enjoy the little things is to live life well. And thanks to watching Zoolander, I know it’s in my power to choose to do so.

6 comments:

  1. Josh, I loved hearing your presentation about your defining moment. In fact, I have shared your presentation with a couple of colleagues. I truly admire your ability to live in the moment. As I was driving to school today, I was actually thinking about your presentation and how I need to work on enjoying every day and not let the past and the future weigh me down.

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    1. Mrs. Le, that's great! I'm really glad that it made a positive impact. It's cool that you shared it, too.

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  2. Jash, your presentation was really good. I like how you were able to keep your presentation light and funny, while continuing to keep the serious message that was inspiring. Way to go Joshy O.

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  3. Josh, I really appreciate your post, I think being able to find happiness and enjoying life for all of the little things is truly invaluable. I'm sure many people would benefit and live their lives in a different way if they too viewed the world as you do. Good luck on your modelling career :P

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  4. I really enjoyed listening to your defining moment Josh! I found myself really able to connect with it in the sense that we choose our attitudes towards certain situations. The fact you chose to enjoy the movie with your father seems that it may have been a bonding moment for you. Also, since you decided to enjoy the movie, do you feel like having a positive outlook on whatever you encounter will open doors for yourself and lead to more opportunities in life?

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  5. I thoroughly enjoyed listening to your defining moment presentation. It was actually my favourite of the whole class. The whole concept of choosing your attitude, and choosing to have a positive outlook on life is really, quite deep. The fact that this was derived from watching a silly movie with your father was uncalled for, but in such a great way. To elaborate a bit, it goes to show that defining moments can come from anywhere, and us as humans can have about a thousand defining moments before we truly know who we are. While in the beginning you show that finding a defining moment may be a struggle as we are still quite young, your actual defining moment is, in a way just an ordinary moment. This could show how many defining moments in someone's life could be overlooked just because they categorize them as ordinary. I also feel as if your concept of having a positive outlook on life might have been shaped by many other moments, not exclusively watching Zoolander for the first time. Again, great presentation and fabulous blog post!

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