As I mentioned in my last post about Billy Mills, he was very focused in
his principles because that's what defines him as an Indian. Today, we saw a
Billy whose determination was being affected by his own decisions. But we can't
just blame him for that. We have to put on his shoes and think about it. We
have to move back in time to those days Billy was a college student. What if
your family can't accept your 'new life'? Does it will going to affect your academic
and extracurricular performance?
For Billy, the response was clearly affirmative. Just after the visit of
his family, he started to be the last in the racing practices. Those days he
wasn't focused at all. He was floating on his internal journey. "I want to
be back in the reservation. The reservation is my home. I don't know what's
happening." This is not all. Unfortunately, his brother, Frank, committed
suicide and this situation devastated him a lot. He didn't wanted to go back at
the university nor stayed at the reservation. Therefore, he joined the Marine
because "I have to find my own place in the world" as he explained to
his sister in the letter he sent her. After all, he started training again
because he was focused in accomplish his dream: be the winner of the 10,000
meter Tokyo Olympics. His external journey is reflected again after he established his
principal objective. Billy's determination to win the Tokyo Olympics made him
to clear his mind. He wanted to make history for his community...and he did it.
At the end of the movie, spectators can see a happy, successful and proud Indian
athlete, Billy Mills.
"It doesn't matter who you are, or where you come from. The ability to triumph begins with you. Always." -Oprah Winfrey
Sometimes our internal and external journeys make us try to get away for a while and think. It can be overwhelming for a person to go through what Billy did and have to make the decisions he had to make. I believes it is very true as you say "we can't just blame him for that. We have to put on his shoes and think about it. We have to move back in time to those days Billy was a college student" There is always a background story to everything. Good Post :)
ReplyDeleteThe fact that Billy started loosing his races after his family's visit is really disappointing. I mean, he let his external journey win over his internal journey. He let the negative comments of his family affect what he thought he wanted and more importantly, what he thought of himself. But that is what life is all about, the constant fight between internal and external journeys. Great post!
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