Sunday, May 29, 2016

Boring People-Not

My late husband Michael was an associate of Michael Mann, the pre-eminent Hollywood director. He used to say, "Mann could film the phone book and it would be interesting."

As I lay in bed this morning contemplating life's gestalt, various possibilities for a new documentary project floated across my consciousness. Cover a war? Document the life of a famous human rights advocate? Find a unique and bizarre story to capture the public's imagination?

In fact, one could randomly pick any stranger on the street and do a fascinating exploration of his or her life, no matter how seemingly bland or uneventful. Simply the fact that a human being is a complex system of thoughts, emotions and genetic matter make for an epic story. What does it take to survive birth, grow up and find a way to stay alive?

As we all know, plenty!

So if any of us ever pronounce a person "boring," then the fault lies with us for not mining the intricate and fascinating inner life of what it means to be human.

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