Category: A Spiritual Look At All Forms Of Entertainment…

It’s movie awards season time and for many individuals, they probably could care less. But in my case, I really do enjoy seeing most of what the industry says are the top-notch films of the prior year. Unfortunately, there’s also something that comes along with the awards season and that’s the fashion police and their harsh judgments about what the stars wear to the awards shows.

Just over a week ago I watched the entire broadcast of the 2015 Golden Globes, which I usually try to do each year. I always find it rather interesting to see the stars on the red carpet out of their acting elements, while they try to be more like everyday people, as much as that’s possible I guess. I also appreciate many of the speeches that are given during the show, especially when they give credit to a Higher Power. And of course I enjoy as well the humor element that generally comes with each of these awards shows. But seeing who wins which awards, especially for all the movies I’ve watched is the main reason why I find these shows entertaining. Except the one thing I don’t enjoy at all, which comes along with this time of the season, is the fashion police and their opinions on what each of those stars wear.

During the red carpet, everyone always seems to be cordial to each of these stars by telling them how lovely they look and asking them what they’re wearing. But then comes the next day and beyond with a slew of news articles from these fashion police who have plenty of choice words to say about what someone was wearing. All of them have headlines that speak to the top fashion mistakes, blunders, atrocities, etc. of the evening.

This saddens me every time I see this because the stars are there for their achievement, not for what they wear. Sometimes I’ve seen the nominations and/or awards a star has received be completely overlooked because of the dress or outfit they wore. Just as importantly, I’m sure each of these stars put on the outfit that some designer has made for them and feel good about themselves and how they look in it. Yet someone from the fashion police comes along and completely trashes their look and makes a big deal about it. Honestly, why does it matter what someone’s wearing?

I put clothes on everyday to keep warm and I do my best to make sure I match. But what are most important about me are my heart and soul and the good I try to do on this planet every single day, not what’s on my body. These stars are no different. They’ve worked hard to get their recognition because of their acting and/or singing, yet the focus is placed upon what they wear out and about, especially at these awards shows.

Sometimes I just wish someone famous would take a stand in the media eye and say, “Who really cares about what someone wears!” because what someone wears really doesn’t matter. What matters is what they do on a daily basis to better themselves, to help others, to inspire, and to spiritually grow. Hopefully one-day people will wake up and see that what’s on the outside of these stars and all of us for that matter, is not what’s truly important…what’s inside is…

Peace, love, light, and joy,

Andrew Arthur Dawson

 

Thomas Jefferson once said, “All men are created equal” and placed those very words in the U.S. Declaration of Independence. But sadly, in the 238 years that has passed since then, so many have had to fight for this very justice time and time again here in the United States. Watching the movie “Selma” was a great reminder of this and how racism, bigotry, and fear still to this day continue to stand in the way of fully achieving this very principle.

“Selma” chronicles Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.’s (David Oyelowo) nonviolent journey to attain equal voting rights for black people, which culminated in an epic march from Selma to Montgomery, Alabama in 1965. A good portion of “Selma” centers on Dr. King’s relationship with President Lyndon B. Johnson (Tom Wilkinson) and his repeated attempts to sway the President into passing legislation to achieve those rights. Unfortunately, as it always seems to be with the government, there were more pressing issues at the time to focus on instead, such as poverty, which is exactly why Dr. King led his people to take a stand in Selma.

Like the “Eyes On The Prize” series and other Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. content I’ve seen over the years, the film highlights a number of the atrocities that took place back then by so many white men, women, and children who were filled with such an incredible amount of hate. The majority of them wanted nothing to do with equality with blacks on any level, especially when it came to voting rights. Thus they resorted to brutal beatings, killing innocent people, and verbal slander to preserve their racism and bigotry. But Dr. King’s nonviolence persevered over it all, even in Selma, and the movie itself truly does do a fantastic job showing each of the painful hurdles that he and his people had to go through to get there.

As I sit back now and reflect upon this movie, I see how a lot has changed in our country since then, but I see how a lot hasn’t changed either. There are still quite a number of racist and bigoted people here who try to oppress women, non-whites, and homosexuals on a daily basis, just to name a few. And every time I take a look at the latest news headlines, there seems to be another act of racism and bigotry that’s taken place, such as the recent events of Ferguson, Missouri.

All of this really makes me wonder on most days what it’s going to take to achieve full equality for every individual in our country, and really in this world as well. What I do know is that any violence will only ever bring forth more violence, which is what Dr. King knew down to his very core.

So I have a lot of gratitude for Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. and movies such as “Selma” because both remind me of the work I know I must keep on doing to uphold what I believe was the true intention of Jefferson’s words long ago.

All people are created equal.

All people…

Peace, love, light, and joy,

Andrew Arthur Dawson

And PS – Happy Martin Luther King Jr. Day! 🙂

I allowed myself to be stifled in creative expression for most of my entire life until just a few years ago. As I watched the movie “Big Eyes”, I was clearly reminded of this struggle and how I allowed fear to suppress the artist trying to bloom within me for a very long time. What was so refreshing about director Tim Burton’s latest film is the spiritual lesson I took away from it, which is for each artist to always remain true to his or her work.

This movie centers on the life of Margaret Ulbrich (Amy Adams) and her extraordinary paintings. In a time when women still held very little importance next to men, Margaret forged out on her own by leaving an abusive husband and heading to San Francisco to start a new life and hopefully a new career using her creative side, which was painting. She soon discovers her unique style of work does not garner the attention it truly deserves. But enter in Walter Keene (Christopher Waltz) who at first glance appears to be charming, dashing, and actually quite the motivator for her talent. He even comes to her rescue by proposing to her when her ex-husband files for full custody of their daughter, as he knows this will show the court that Margaret has the stable family necessary to raise her. Unfortunately, Walter also is a chronic liar and manipulator, which Margaret begins to discover when he starts taking credit for her paintings under the notion that a woman’s artwork doesn’t sell. As Walter’s lies continue to grow, so do the sales of her paintings and his fame, leading her only further and further into seclusion and self-doubt about the talent she really has. “Big Eyes” then goes on to tell the rest of the true story of one woman’s descent into omission and rise out of it into becoming the gifted artist she was always meant to become.

In all honesty, I have to say I never thought of myself much as an artist just as Margaret Keene once believed for herself. That’s only because we both were consumed with so much self-doubt that we allowed others to either take credit for something creative we produced or limited how we expressed our creativity because of fear. While I may not be blessed artistically in the way Margaret has been in life, I actually do have a creative talent that comes by way of a pen, or if you will, the keys on my laptop. Often, I’ve been told though that I should write differently than I do, that I should tone it done a little, or that I should not share so personally about others or myself. But no different than the way a painter portrays his or her muse on canvas; the way I write is my very own unique style of creative expression. And trying to change that for someone else is not being true to myself.

That’s why I’m so grateful for people like Margaret Keene and her life story, for movies like Tim Burton’s “Big Eyes”, and for all those in this world who continue to remind me to always be true to myself, especially when it comes down to any of the artistic work I ever produce in this life.

Peace, love, light, and joy,

Andrew Arthur Dawson