...and 20 years later...I fell in love with Mickey Rourke all over again

Ahhhhhh . . . what can I say? He is the ultimate bad boy, Harley-riding . . . good-hearted, dog-loving, passionate, artistic, spiritual, introspective Catholic boy . . . a hero from the depths of hell . . . a man's man . . .a lady's man . . . man!
Way to go, Mickey Rourke!
You are 'hope.'
God Bless you and keep you.

Three Days and Nine Steps

Three days and nine steps . . . Neil Armstrong became the first man to walk on the moon . . . he became an overnight sensation! Right.
If it were really that easy. If dreams manifesting into realities could happen so quickly and effortlessly. If there really was such a thing as an overnight sensation - well, I guess it wouldn't be so sensational.
In 1969, I was young and had no real appreciation for the magnitude of such a feat - walking on the moon (or even getting there for that matter).
I grew up in the era of Science Fiction and had assumed I would be wearing a cool silver and white space suit and flying around like Judy Jetson by the time the Millennium - the futuristic year of 2000 - rang in. It was not such a big thing for me - it was expected. Those old expectations fell to the wayside. I'm still wearing cotton, driving on the ground . . . kind of still waiting to lift off.
Now, much older and a little wiser but still not able to fully understand (therefore not fully capable of appreciating) what it means to dream such an incredible and seemingly unattainable dream and believe it into existence through determination, research, knowledge, diligence, persistence, assistance, blood loss, sweat, fear and tears . . . and eight years.
J.F.K did not live to see the dream he dreamed for the nation come true - but his dream gave us and the entire world hope that we can do the same in our own worlds.
Yes, I saw "In the Shadow of the Moon," last night. And I loved it. And I needed it.
If we can put a man on the moon then . . . fill in the blank with your own personal dream.

Follow The Rabbit-Proof Fence - And Another Landmark To Follow

For nine weeks and 1,500 miles, three young Aboriginal Australian girls followed a rabbit-proof fence (originally constructed to prevent rabbit infestation) to route their return home to Jigalong. In 1931, the girls were removed from their parents and taken to the Moore River Native Settlement, as part of the Stolen Generation. (From 1915 to 1969 the Australian Government made Aboriginal children wards of the State, denying all parental rights and sending the children to Internment Camps and orphanages where many were adopted out to white families.)

In 1996, Doris Pilkington Garimara, the daughter one of the three girls, Molly Craig, wrote a book about her mother's ordeal; "Follow the Rabbit-Proof Fence." The 2002 film directed by Phillip Noyce, "Rabbit-Proof Fence," is based on that book. The film, visually stunning, presents a story of courage, perseverance and love in a quietly powerful way - without unnecessary dialog, overwhelming despair or tearful manipulations. It is one of my favorite movies.

So, what brought all of this on - talking about a movie that is five years old - the good news that came over the BBC yesterday: Bruce Trevorrow, a fifty-year-old Aboriginal man who was taken from his family as a baby was awarded A$525,000 compensation, a judgment delivered by Justice Thomas Gray in the landmark case. The Supreme Court of South Australia found that Mr. Trevorrow was treated unlawfully when taken from his family in 1958 and put into foster care with a white family. Justice Gray established that the taking of a child from his or her family in these such circumstances was wrongful imprisonment. This is the first time that a child from the "Stolen Generation" has been recognized as having been unlawfully imprisoned due to the Australian Government assimilation policies from 1915-1969.

"I thought that we would never get there," Bruce Trevorrow said. "But the day's come when I've got the peace of mind to start my life." The judgment alone took eighteen months to be delivered.

Although, outside of the court, he also said it was not possible to put a dollar value on the pain he had endured.

For more information on the movie: Rabbit-Proof Fence
For more on Australia's Aboriginal People and The Stolen Generation