Lindsey and I just spent one month watching Ken Burn's documentary, "The War" over a period of about 16 hours. I can't say this about many things that I've watched, but I have to say that I have had a major mindset change after watching this documentary. We spent 16 hours listening to story after story after story of soldiers, husbands, wives, children, neighbors, and newspaper reporters giving their personal accounts of World War II.So, why was my watching this such a life shaping event? I was reminded of the great need to listen to others. Before watching "The War" I had respect for veterans, and for people who lived through this situation, but I did not have a "profound" respect for them. It was more of a distant appreciation. Now, after listening to these families share their experiences, I feel like I have a deeper understanding of how HUGE "The War" was and how this season in history dramatically changed millions of lives.
From now on, I am aiming to have a deeper understanding of historical events. This takes time and effort, but it is worth it. In the same way, I am also challenged to listen to others that I personally encounter with the goal of having a deeper empathy, as opposed to having a distant appreciation of their situation.
Who knew all that would come from watching a documentary?!
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