Crash

Crash will never, ever get old. Since it came out two years ago, I have seen it about 30 times. (This is a very flattering fact as I can rarely sit still for the duration of a movie and if I do sit down I promptly take a nap.) The movie intertwines the lives of twenty unrelated individuals in Los Angeles. It is harsh, beautiful, sad, and so hopeful, all at the same time. Each character is forced to interact with someone who they would never typically consider a friend and each interaction brings with it a new understanding. As I watched, I couldn't help but think how relevant each character and each lesson is to all of us.

Everyone in the film seemed to have a second chance to right a wrong or the opportunity to forgive someone later. Life is not always like this. We usually are only given one chance, the first chance, in all that we experience. We will never have the power to control the world around us, but we can choose how we react to the situations we are faced with. We will never entirely understand someone else's circumstance but how we treat another person will have an affect on them. Crash reminds me that there is still hope in a world full of imperfect people. While we have all passed judgment on someone else, we also have the astonishing capacity to accept someone else with compassion.

First, we must remind ourselves that how we act towards others IS significant, no matter how minute a relationship may seem. We could impact the rest of their day, their life, and the chain reaction of events that happens on this earth if we wanted to. Then, we must accept the actions of others and attempt to understand what they may be feeling. We must believe that what they do stems from a deep, shared, greater good. And finally, we must hope that these harsh, beautiful collisions continue to happen because without them life would be mundane. Movies would not be made, songs may never be written and stories never told. Human interaction is a powerful and creative force. On that note, I believe we have some people to meet...