A Masterpiece Out of Hope and Love (Reflective Journal & Movie Review on "Every Child is Special")

     In this imperfect world, what matters most is power – money, position, riches and fame. It goes like this, “If you are poor, you’re nobody. If you are wealthy, you’re somebody.” But in the eyes of the Lord Almighty, the Creator of all, every person is a masterpiece. Just like the great painters who design their craft, they do not just maintain their style of artwork – they also make art experiments to create something new. But despite of different designs, their paintings are all special.

     On October 3, 2015, we watched a Hindi movie entitled, “Every Child Is Special.” Since then, this became my favorite movie. Not because of its setting, nor its special effects – but because of its essence.

     A young boy named “Ishaan” is the main character on the movie. He is a boy who sees the world full of wonders. He is an innocent child – whenever he smiles, he makes the people around him to cheer up. Everything seems so perfect for him, but there is one thing that makes him feel so “weird” and “out of place” from other children – and that is his Dyslexia. Everyone around him, even his own parents, treats him as a “hopeless case.” He cannot read and write properly. If his teacher asks him what he sees on his book, he will say that the “letters are dancing” – but no one believes in him. He is humiliated and mentally abused for no valid reason. Until one person comes in his life and turns his life the other way around – he is Ram, Ishaan’s art teacher.

     In this movie that I watched, for me, aside from Ishaan, Ram was one of the most important characters on the movie. What made an impact on me was his personality. He looked on everything with hope and love.

     I believe that as Christians and as leaders, we must acquire these characteristics and apply these in our daily lives. We must not act like “bigots” who dislike and judge other people for no reason. Instead, we must be open-minded and compassionate to understand different situations. Before saying that a person is not worthy, we must be open to all possibilities that this person may have problems in life or this person needs hope and love in order to bring out the best in him or her.

     There were times in my life when I experienced bullying. A lot of people discouraged me because they thought that I couldn’t make it to the finish line, which are my dreams. They thought that I was weak and too young to aim high. Fortunately, God gave me to my parents. Until now, they continue to support me all throughout my studies. They encourage me whenever I feel down or hopeless. They are the ones who always tell me not to give up and continue to aspire. They make me feel special everyday.

     Now, I realized that being intelligent or successful is not a basis of being special. Every person has an exceptional ability that makes him or her unique from others. What we only have to do is to help each other discover oneself. Let us bring out the brightest side of our fellow people – inspire, encourage and empower them with undying hope and unfailing love.

*I wrote this last year. This was one of the journals that I passed at HB Centrex (a student leadership program) in Quezon City.

"Every Child is Special" is such a good movie. It's a MUST WATCH.