Monday, August 18, 2014

Life Lessons From Mr Magorium's Wonder Emporium

I was flipping through the channels tonight and stumbled across Mr. Magorium's Wonder Emporium.  I absolutely love this movie!  It is full of wonderful, positive messages.  Now, I know what you're thinking, that I only like this movie because Natalie Portman is in it.  But that just adds to my love!  Every time I watch this movie I feel good and I feel inspired.  But that feeling rarely lasts, so I'm hoping that maybe if I write about the lessons learned from the movie, I will actually listen.

"Your life is an occasion.  Rise to it."
There is perhaps no greater message in this movie than this.  If we all just listened to this and rose to the occasion imagine how wonderful the world would be.  Imagine how great we would feel!  I keep waiting for my moment to come, but perhaps my moment is here and I just need to rise to the occasion and grab it.  I need to stop making excuses and just go for it.  And I'm sure many of you could use the same advice.

"37 seconds well used is a lifetime."
Why waste any time we have on this planet?  Use every last second to the best of our ability.  I know that's easier said than done, but even time spent deep in thought is time well spent.  Think about that.


Don't be a "just guy"
You know the type of person I'm talking about.  The one who thinks those are 'just' clouds, or that is 'just' a room full of chairs.  They can't see past what something actually is to see what could be there.  I actually think I do a pretty good job of avoiding this, but I feel like too many people around me try to turn me into a 'just guy'.  Try to imagine how much more fun the world could be if you looked past what 'just' is.  I don't have a clip for this, but here is the dialogue.
Molly Mahoney: i knew it. As soon as I saw that suit.
Henry Weston: Knew what?
Molly Mahoney: You're a 'just' guy.
Henry Weston: What's a 'just' guy?
Molly Mahoney: A guy just like you. Same hair, same suit, same shoes, walks around, no matter what, you think it's all just a store, it's just a bench, it's just a tree. It's just what it is, nothing more!
Henry Weston: Alright but, but this
[looks over his shoulder]
Henry Weston: is just a store.
Molly Mahoney: I'm sure to you... it is.

"You have to give people a chance"
This is one that I really have to work on.  Much like Eric in the movie I assume people think I'm weird and don't want to play with me.  I have a hard time making friends.  Perhaps I should take the advice from the movie and give people a chance.  It starts by saying hi.  Again, I couldn't find a clip, or a good transcript of the dialogue, but here's what I found.
Sweetheart, did you spend
the whole day at the store?

I did lots of stuff.

Like what?
  
I built a sculpture,
I got 20,000 paddles
on a paddleball...
and I figured out
how to win at solitaire
every time without cheating.
  
Eric, those are all things
you do by yourself.
  
There were...
people... around.
  
We agreed you could come
back from camp early
if you made an effort
to make some friends.
  
It's not my fault
people don't like me.
  
People love you- once they
get the chance to know you.
  
No, they don't.
They think I'm weird.
  
Because you build sculptures
by yourself.
  
Because nobody wants
to play with me.
  
Have you asked anyone
to play with you?
  
Not really.
  
Well, Eric, you have
to give people a chance.
  
I know what'll happen.
  
You don't, sweetheart.
Trust me, people are
always full of surprises.
Just...
just pick someone.
Anyone. Pick someone
you don't know,
and try to make friends with them.
See what happens.
  
I don't even know how to start.
  
Easy.
Start by saying hi.

"I'm Stuck"
This is totally how I feel right now.  I'm stuck.  But maybe I need to stop thinking about being stuck, and start thinking about how I can stun the world!
Molly Mahoney: I'm stuck!
Mr. Edward Magorium: Oh, to my floor?
Molly Mahoney: No, sir.
Mr. Edward Magorium: Then what?
Molly Mahoney: Like a person. You remember when I was a little girl and I could play Rahmaninov's Second Piano Concerto and everyone was talking about my potential?
Molly Mahoney: Well, I am 23 now and everyone's still talking about my potential but if you ask em to play the song I know best... I'll still play Rachmaninov's Second.
Mr. Edward Magorium: May I suggest you stun the world with Molly Mahoney's First?

"What Mahoney needed was the opportunity to prove to herself that she was something more than she believed."
I think this is true of most of us, myself especially.  I need to believe in myself more, and seek out the opportunities to show myself that I am more than I believe myself to be.  Who knows, maybe I can do something magical.

Now I have it in writing, so any time I forget about these things, feel free to remind me to go back and reread this post.  And hopefully this post can inspire you as well.

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