As I’m sitting here watching “The King’s Speech”, I am struck by a couple of things. Obviously, the performances in this film are just beyond stellar. More importantly, I am gaining a real sense of how frustrated this man is, who happened to become King, with his inability to communicate effectively. The words are rattling around in his head, the ideas are forming effortlessly in his mouth, and yet he stands in front of his nation and the world unable to be heard.
Mistaken for being less intelligent simply because of a stammer.
Judged as inadequate because of his vocal delivery.
How many times have we passed pre-judgment on someone because they were…different or unusual? How many times have others passed errant judgment on us?
We can have no way of knowing, can we? Only the most bold or ignorant let their false judgment be known; more often, I think the erroneous perceptions are kept quiet. Hidden but nonetheless dangerous.
- Red hair? Hot tempered.
- Uneducated? Stupid.
- Tattoos? Rebellious.
- Homeless? Lazy.
- Overweight? Undisciplined.
- Divorced? Well…let’s not get started.
And we’re all guilty. We all have an inventory of “snap” first impressions and, thankfully, most of us know how to shelve those initial impressions until they are either confirmed or refuted. Most of us.
This film gave me a renewed appreciation for someone’s struggle that seems insignificant but was the single most debilitating thing in the world for this man. It makes me feel a little better about my struggles and how much importance I place on them. Of course, it makes me feel more sensitive about your struggles, too.
As someone who has been misunderstood and pre-judged relatively often in my life~ not sure why~ my epiphany as I watched this movie is that my struggle is always to show my authentic self and convince people of who I really am. Now that the movie is over, I’m less interested in persuading and more interested in just being.
Hmmm…..all for $3.99 because of OnDemand. Who knew.
Be blessed!
Amy