One of my best friends, Richelle, greets every new person that she meets with one question: “What is the one thing you think everyone should experience at least once?” With the best icebreaker of all time, comes some pretty rad answers. When asked about the responses, Richelle said that she has received replies ranging from “talking to a stranger on a bus,” “falling in love,” and even “taking yourself out on a date.” Ever since I have heard that question, I have been completely captivated with coming up with what I believe everyone should experience at least once in life. Well, I am happy to say that I found my answer in the least expected place—a movie theater.
I am not the least bit a movie fanatic, in fact, I probably only watch a handful a year. However, the rare occurrence occurred this past weekend, and I saw a movie that everyone should see. Scratch that, it should be a requirement for everyone to see this movie because everyone can learn from it. The incredible, watch me over-and-over, movie that I’m talking about is the drama Wonder, directed by Stephen Chbosky.
If you have not seen Wonder, I cannot stress enough that you should. It’s captivating, charming, funny, sad, and something everyone of all ages can learn from. It was the main character of this movie, a fifth grader named Auggie, who gave me my answer to Richelle’s question. Without spoiling the movie, I’ll tell you that Auggie spoke to me when he said that “we all deserve a standing ovation…” and then in that moment I realized, that was my answer.
Yes, a “standing ovation,” is the one thing that I think everyone should experience at least once. Few people truly get the standing ovation that they deserve. Sure, movie stars, presidents, and singers get big applause, but too few “ordinary” people experience this moment. Moms, dads, firefighters, teachers, grocery clerks, college students, and kindergarteners are just a few of the people who deserve a big round of applause.
“Why?” you might ask. Well, because ultimately everyone is going through something, or doing something that deserves cheers. Too many people go unappreciated, or don’t realize how much they to mean to the people around them. Heck, the round of applause doesn’t have to be for some super special accolade, sometimes people just need to be reminded that they’re doing great job just being them. So, if no one has given you a standing ovation yet, here’s to you—you deserve it.
