Continuing with the theme of gratitude….<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
I don’t know whether this counts as one of “life’s simple pleasures” or not.\u00a0\u00a0 It uses technology and it’s not free, but it is<\/em> a pleasure, it’s comparatively inexpensive, and it’s a nice thing to do with one or more friends.<\/p>\n I’m talking about movies.\u00a0 I am grateful for movies.\u00a0 Like a good book, they can entertain, transport, inspire, educate, captivate, and provide a healthy dose of distraction from the “real world.”\u00a0 They are the modern day version of sitting around a fire telling stories.<\/p>\n This weekend is one of the biggest opportunities\u00a0 of the year for movie theaters to rake in the money.\u00a0 Families and friends are reuniting, and going to the movies together provides a nice respite from all the being-together-in-one-house thing.\u00a0 For a relatively small price, someone else will entertain your guests, provide refreshments, and clean up after they leave.<\/p>\n The best movies absorb your attention completely.\u00a0 You completely forget you’re sitting in a chair in a darkened theater.\u00a0 You forget you’re watching actresses and actors.\u00a0 You forget everything except what you’re seeing on the screen.<\/p>\n What are some of your favorite movies?\u00a0 Remember watching ET?\u00a0 The Star Wars movies?\u00a0 Raiders of the Lost Ark?\u00a0 Gandhi?\u00a0 Avatar?\u00a0 Lord of the Rings?\u00a0 What about tearjerkers like Sophie’s Choice, Pay It Forward, Schindler’s List,\u00a0 The Titanic, Braveheart, The Blind Side?\u00a0 What about movies that make you laugh?\u00a0 The Pink Panther, Monty Python, Tootsie, Princess Bride, Some Like It Hot, Parenthood.\u00a0 What about the animated ones?\u00a0 Up, Finding Nemo, Cinderella, Toy Story.<\/p>\n I am grateful for scriptwriters and movie makers.\u00a0 I’m grateful for great actors and actresses.\u00a0 I’m grateful for movie theaters and I’m grateful for Netflix.\u00a0 And for that matter, I’m grateful for authors, artists, songwriters, and musicians.\u00a0 What would this world be without creativity?!\u00a0 We need the Arts to lift us up, to move us, to inspire us.\u00a0 Our creativity lifts us from the status of animal and inches us past human and toward the divine.<\/p>\n Celebrate the Arts today!\u00a0 Go see a movie, read a book, visit a gallery, attend a concert.\u00a0 Support your local artists.\u00a0 Go see live music.\u00a0 Patronize your local library or bookstore.\u00a0 Paint a picture.\u00a0 Sew a costume.\u00a0 Play your guitar.\u00a0 Get your creative juices flowing!\u00a0 We are so blessed to be creative beings.<\/p>\n Thank you for it all!<\/p>\n <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" Continuing with the theme of gratitude…. I don’t know whether this counts as one of “life’s simple pleasures” or not.\u00a0\u00a0 It uses technology and it’s not free, but it is a pleasure, it’s comparatively inexpensive, and it’s a nice thing to do with one or more friends. I’m talking about movies.\u00a0 I am grateful…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":553,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[461,264,3,231,118,2,4,459,53,460],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-467","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-7-days-of-gratitude","category-artists","category-blessings","category-creativity","category-delight","category-gratitude","category-inspiration","category-movies","category-music","category-the-arts"],"yoast_head":"\n