Today I Watched Schindler's List

Today I watched Schindler's List. Before watching, I debated back and forth about it. I did some research, prayed, talked with my Dad, etc. I really was conflicted. How could I not be when the IMDb rating is R for things like those on this list?

This rating system makes the movie seem so evil. So graphic and vulgar.
Well, to be honest, it is.

I watched Schindler's List to gain a historical perspective on the Holocaust. It gave me that and so much more. Here are some things I learned:
1) There was more to the Holocaust than the gas chambers. There were a lot of unseen things, and a lot of things going on in the background.
2) The human spirit can become so dulled so as to see no life in the people around it. Only numbers, orders, and obstacles. This is a real problem when the numbed man is holding a gun and giving the orders. Principled leaders are important.
3) The way a film is written, (Along with the camera angles and filters on film and such) may change the meaning of the film drastically. A scene which would normally be seductive and vile to watch becomes a fact of the movie. Still wrong, but not made for the pleasure of the viewer - rather for the telling of the story.
4) Sometimes to tell a story, it's necessary to say the bad things. As much as we try to ignore them, and as easy as it is in the modern age, bad things happen. Auschwitz is a thing of the past, but genocide isn't. Planned Parenthood kills millions of children. Christians in the Middle East are being massacred. We can ignore the bad things all we want, but the first step to change is recognition. If we never recognize the problems we have, they will never go away.
5) Humanity never goes away. During the darkest times and most vile moments, there is someone somewhere doing something good. A prisoner who smiles holds life in his heart. It is when we begin to see the humanity in other people that we really learn to be human ourselves.
6) Money is a powerful tool. Use it wisely and you will be a great benefit to your fellow man. Use it poorly, and you can lose your soul. Choose ye this day whom ye will serve.
7) Out of the depths of the greatest struggle come the greatest joys. Embrace the struggle. Let life flow through you, do not try to fight it for some bias of normality. Really bad things happen all the time to normal people, and tomorrow they may happen to you or I. Maybe not. But if you live every day after such an event trying to pretend like everything is normal, you will never grow. If you live every day bracing for such an event, you will never be happy. Remember, the first step to solving any problem is recognizing it. Accept today for what it is, and move forward. That is when you will shine.

A word about the girl in the red coat:
Schindler's List is a movie done entirely in black and white. At one point in the film, one girl is shown with a red coat on among all the black and white. She hides from the Nazis, and we don't find out what happens to her. Later, her decomposing body is seen on a wheelbarrow, the red coat still covering her. She is incinerated with the rest of the bodies. It gives a stark reminder that the people were individuals. This girl was an individual. She had a home and a family. Hopes about life and the future. Secrets and stories and questions. The Nazis killed her just as indiscriminately as they did any other individual. The making of the movie in black and white was a brilliant move in the fact that it showed the numbed perspective of the Nazis. All was the same. Nothing and nobody was different.
So the question that must be asked today is this.
What is my perspective of man? Do I see in color?
Do you?

If you can watch Schindler's List, I highly recommend it. Watch it for the humanity, not the darkness. There is darkness everywhere, and if we don't learn to recognize it, we may become a part of it.
Don't become a part of the darkness.
Be loving,
Be honest,
Be human. 

Love,
Dallin