I've recently made the decision to rename an area of the blog. Just around New Years of 2021 I wrote a piece thanking all of those who have paid a visit to the blog. Our audience is small, but I am grateful for everyone who reads our pieces and gives us a chance. It means the world. At the time, I had been reading "Profiles In Courage" by John F. Kennedy (JFK) and Ted Sorenson, which details the heroic actions of members of the United States Senate throughout the course of our nations history. The book inspired me, and made me think deeply about the virtue of courage.
Shortly after finishing the book, I watched the movie Dallas Buyers club, which details the story of Ron Woodroof - a very imperfect man, who became a hero to many. When reflecting on Ron's story, I compared it to JFK and Ted's book, and came to the realization that all these stories of heroic actions had a common and very significant detail - everyone was imperfect. The hero is often not the person you would suspect. One could take a look at these individuals and think little of them, who are they to be heroes? They are just everyday people, many of them flawed, some not even of age to fit the mold.
After much reflection I thought I should create a new series on the website. Originally, I wanted to name it Imperfect Heroes, but after deliberating with some friends and giving it more thought, we didn't think it would be the right name. The phrase "imperfect heroes" implies such a thing exists as "perfect heroes," and as the old adage goes - "nobody is perfect." So ultimately, I went with the name Profiles in Heroes. My plan was to write a comprehensive essay introducing the series, and then to do something along the lines of a monthly feature, however, then Rush Limbaugh passed away. I had a pretty extensive draft done at the time, but I ended up abandoning it. I wrote multiple pieces in tribute to Rush, filed the main one under the Profiles in Heroes section of the site, and then never came back.
Over the months the politics of the world has broken my heart so much. The divisiveness, the meanness, seeing lifelong friends act like strangers - it made me feel defeated. I asked myself whether or not this endeavor to write these articles would ever have a significant impact on anyone, but giving up was never an option. I have to write, even if nobody reads my essays, but a note on that later. For a period, my motivation declined.
I tried reading more, but ended up wasting a lot of time (or so I thought), and watched a lot of TV series. Some of the shows I watched were exceptionally profound, and made me ponder a lot of different things. As a result, I thought about creating another addition to the website, and to title it The Culture Corner. I soon realized that before I knew it, I might have more sections than articles, and I did not want to pollute the site. Ultimately, I've kept writing about mostly politics, and supplemented my essays with items that have inspired me.
Then it hit me. I could write an entire essay on a singular scene from a film, a lyric in a song, a poem - the list goes on. Why don't I just change the Profiles in Heroes section, and call it Inspired By, and I can include a comprehensive list of topics aimed at promoting optimism, courage, and most importantly - inspiration. So that's what we're doing. I don't know how frequent these pieces will be, but I hope to supplement the usual mundane monstrosity of politics with more impactful dialogue. If I do write about a film, show, or something of the sorts I will detail the piece will contain spoilers and to what - nothing worse than somebody who spoils things for others.
SPOILER BELOW - Pertaining to the movie Field of Dreams
As it goes with the blog, when I had my periods where I lacked motivation, I thought about the movie Field of Dreams, which happens to be one of, it not my father's favorite film. The movie essentially details a man who builds a baseball field for nobody to play on. "If you build it, they will come," the main character is told. Ultimately he constructs it, and despite all the hardship, despite it looking like nobody would come and the endeavor was to be a failure - people came. So that's what we're going to do here. We will continue to expose toxic politics, corruption, and discuss the issues beyond the surface level. However, we will also build an area for you to come visit for a dose of inspiration and optimism. I have a list of ideas to write about, but I'll leave you in suspense for now. As we build, we looking forward to having more people join us - after all, everyone is welcome.
Essay from New Years to say thank you: https://www.morethananationblog.com/post/thank-you
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