BIG INSPIRATIONAL MOVIE SPEECHES by PRESIDENTS, COACHES, CAPTAINS, or LEADERS

In the MTC one day my friend Hermana Tanner - not companion but roommate - admitted to us her fascination with famous Presidential speeches. She has perfectly memorized the Declaration of Independence, the Gettysburg Address, and the following quote from Independence Day. I was so impressed I promised myself I'd do the same someday.

Well, it's been more than two years, and I'm getting around to it. They're not quite memorized, but I thought I'd at least collect some really good ones and blog a sweet to-do list. I know there are some really good ones that I forgot to include, so please, let me know.

BIG INSPIRATIONAL MOVIE SPEECHES

by PRESIDENTS, COACHES, CAPTAINS, or LEADERS:

Independence Day:

President Thomas Whitmore: Good morning.
[PA doesn't work. Turns it on]
President Thomas Whitmore: Good morning. In less than an hour, aircraft from here will join others from around the world. And you will be launching the largest aerial battle in the history of mankind. "Mankind." That word should have new meaning for all of us today. We can't be consumed by our petty differences anymore. We will be united in our common interests. Perhaps it's fate that today is the Fourth of July, and you will once again be fighting for our freedom... Not from tyranny, oppression, or persecution... but from annihilation. We are fighting for our right to live. To exist. And should we win the day, the Fourth of July will no longer be known as an American holiday, but as the day the world declared in one voice: "We will not go quietly into the night!" We will not vanish without a fight! We're going to live on! We're going to survive! Today we celebrate our Independence Day!

Remember the Titans:

Coach Boone: This is where they fought the battle of Gettysburg. Fifty thousand men died right here on this field, fighting the same fight that we are still fighting among ourselves today. This green field right here, painted red, bubblin' with the blood of young boys. Smoke and hot lead pouring right through their bodies. Listen to their souls, men. I killed my brother with malice in my heart. Hatred destroyed my family. You listen, and you take a lesson from the dead. If we don't come together right now on this hallowed ground, we too will be destroyed, just like they were. I don't care if you like each other of not, but you will respect each other. And maybe... I don't know, maybe we'll learn to play this game like men.

Return of the King:

Theoden: Forth, and fear no darkness! Arise! Arise, Riders of Theoden! Spears shall be shaken, shields shall be splintered! A sword day... a red day... ere the sun rises! Ride now!... Ride now!... Ride! Ride to ruin and the world's ending! Death! Death! DEATH! Forth, Eorlingas!

Aragorn: Hold your ground, hold your ground! Sons of Gondor, of Rohan, my brothers! I see in your eyes the same fear that would take the heart of me. A day may come when the courage of men fails, when we forsake our friends and break all bonds of fellowship, but it is not this day. An hour of woes and shattered shields, when the age of men comes crashing down! But it is not this day! This day we fight! By all that you hold dear on this good Earth, I bid you *stand, Men of the West!*

Rudy:

Rudy: We're gonna go inside, we're gonna go outside, inside and outside. We're gonna get 'em on the run boys and once we get 'em on the run we're gonna keep 'em on the run. And then we're gonna go go go go go go and we're not gonna stop til we get across that goalline. This is a team they say is... is good, well I think we're better than them. They can't lick us, so what do you say men?

Fortune: You're 5 foot nothin', 100 and nothin', and you have barely a speck of athletic ability. And you hung in there with the best college football players in the land for 2 years. And you're gonna walk outta here with a degree from the University of Notre Dame. In this life, you don't have to prove nothin' to nobody but yourself. And after what you've gone through, if you haven't done that by now, it ain't gonna never happen. Now go on back.

Dead Poets Society:

John Keating: We don't read and write poetry because it's cute. We read and write poetry because we are members of the human race. And the human race is filled with passion. And medicine, law, business, engineering, these are noble pursuits and necessary to sustain life. But poetry, beauty, romance, love, these are what we stay alive for. To quote from Whitman, "O me! O life!... of the questions of these recurring; of the endless trains of the faithless... of cities filled with the foolish; what good amid these, O me, O life?" Answer. That you are here - that life exists, and identity; that the powerful play goes on and you may contribute a verse. That the powerful play *goes on* and you may contribute a verse. What will your verse be?

Braveheart:

William Wallace: I AM William Wallace! And I see a whole army of my countrymen, here in defiance of tyranny. You've come to fight as free men... and free men you are. What will you do with that freedom? Will you fight?
Veteran: Against that? No! We will run. And we will live.
William Wallace: Aye, fight and you may die. Run, and you'll live... at least a while. And dying in your beds, many years from now, would you be willin' to trade ALL the days, from this day to that, for one chance, just one chance, to come back here and tell our enemies that they may take our lives, but they'll never take... OUR FREEDOM!

Dave:

Dave: If you've ever seen the look on somebody's face the day they finally get a job, I've had some experience with this, they look like they could fly. And its not about the paycheck, it's about respect, it's about looking in the mirror and knowing that you've done something valuable with your day. And if one person could start to feel this way, and then another person, and then another person, soon all these other problems may not seem so impossible. You don't really know how much you can do until you, stand up and decide to try.

Dave: Mr. Speaker. Vice President. Members of the Congress. Fellow Americans. I wish I could be here today under different circumstances. There are many things about this country we should discuss. But I realize that's not possible now. As you know, my former chief of staff has implicated me in a scandal involving the First Liberty Savings and Loan. Once people start discussing a scandal, it's hard to talk about anything else. So let's talk about it. Bob Alexander has accused me of --I'll read this to make sure I get it right-- ''...illegally influencing regulators on behalf of campaign contributors...interfering with an ongoing Justice Department investigation...and violating federal election laws in the area of campaign finance.'' Let's get right to the guts of it: every one of these accusations is absolutely true.
Bob Alexander: Ha ha ha! Die, you pond scum!
Dave: I'm the President, and as they say, the buck stops here. So I take full responsibility for each one of my illegal actions. But that's not the whole story. And I think the American people are entitled to the real truth. I have here evidence in the form of notes, letters, and written memoranda, proving that Bob Alexander was involved in each of these illegal acts, and in most cases planned them as well. Allegations of wrongdoing have also been made against Nance. Allegations of wrongdoing have also been made against Vice President Nance. Now, as this evidence will prove, at no time and in no way was the Vice President involved in any of this affair. Bob just made all that up. Vice President Nance is a good and decent public servant, and I want to apologize for any pain that this has caused him or his family.
[Shot of Bob Alexander, watching TV alone]
While we're on the subject, I'd like to apologize to the American people. You see, I forgot that I was hired to do a job for you. And it was just a temp job at that. I forgot I had millions of people who were paying me to make their lives a bit better. I didn't live up to my part of the bargain. There are certain things you should expect from your president. I ought to care more about you than I do about me. I ought to care about- more about- what's right than I do about what's popular. I ought to be willing to give up this whole thing...for something I believe in...because if I'm not...if I'm not.... If I'm not, then... maybe I don't belong here in the first....

The Fugitive:

Deputy Marshal Samuel Gerard: Alright, listen up, people. Our fugitive has been on the run for ninety minutes. Average foot speed over uneven ground barring injuries is 4 miles-per-hour. That gives us a radius of six miles. What I want from each and every one of you is a hard-target search of every gas station, residence, warehouse, farmhouse, henhouse, outhouse and doghouse in that area. Checkpoints go up at fifteen miles. Your fugitive's name is Dr. Richard Kimble. Go get him.

Snow Falling On Cedars:

Nels Gudmundsson: I am an old man. I do not walk so well anymore, and one of my eyes is close to useless. My life is drawing to a close. Why do I say this? I say this because it means I ponder matters in the light of death in a way that you do not. I feel like a traveller descended from Mars, astonished at what passes here. What I see is the same human frailty passed from generation to generation. We hate one another. We are the victims of irrational fears.You may think this is a small trial. In a small place. Well, it isn’t. Every once in a while, somewhere in the world, Humanity goes on trial. And integrity. And decency. Every once in a while, common folks get called on to give the report card for the human race. In the name of humanity, do your duty as jurors. Return this man to his wife and children. Set him free. As you must.

Chariots of Fire:

Eric Liddell: You came to see a race today. To see someone win. It happened to be me. But I want you to do more than just watch a race. I want you to take part in it. I want to compare faith to running in a race. It's hard. It requires concentration of will, energy of soul. You experience elation when the winner breaks the tape - especially if you've got a bet on it. But how long does that last? You go home. Maybe you're dinner's burnt. Maybe you haven't got a job. So who am I to say, "Believe, have faith," in the face of life's realities? I would like to give you something more permanent, but I can only point the way. I have no formula for winning the race. Everyone runs in her own way, or his own way. And where does the power come from, to see the race to its end? From within. Jesus said, "Behold, the Kingdom of God is within you. If with all your hearts, you truly seek me, you shall ever surely find me." If you commit yourself to the love of Christ, then that is how you run a straight race.

Amazing Grace:

Lord Charles Fox: When people speak of great men, they think of men like Napoleon - men of violence. Rarely do they think of peaceful men. But contrast the reception they will receive when they return home from their battles. Napoleon will arrive in pomp and in power, a man who's achieved the very summit of earthly ambition. And yet his dreams will be haunted by the oppressions of war. William Wilberforce, however, will return to his family, lay his head on his pillow and remember: the slave trade is no more.

Apollo 13:

Jim Lovell: Uh well, I'll tell ya, I remember this one time - I'm in a Banshee at night in combat conditions, so there's no running lights on the carrier. It was the Shrangri-La, and we were in the Sea of Japan and my radar had jammed, and my homing signal was gone... because somebody in Japan was actually using the same frequency. And so it was - it was leading me away from where I was supposed to be. And I'm lookin' down at a big, black ocean, so I flip on my map light, and then suddenly: zap. Everything shorts out right there in my cockpit. All my instruments are gone. My lights are gone. And I can't even tell now what my altitude is. I know I'm running out of fuel, so I'm thinking about ditching in the ocean. And I, I look down there, and then in the darkness there's this uh, there's this green trail. It's like a long carpet that's just laid out right beneath me. And it was the algae, right? It was that phosphorescent stuff that gets churned up in the wake of a big ship. And it was - it was - it was leading me home. You know? If my cockpit lights hadn't shorted out, there's no way I'd ever been able to see that. So uh, you, uh, never know... what... what events are to transpire to get you home.

The Two Towers:

Frodo: I can't do this, Sam.
Sam: I know. It's all wrong. By rights we shouldn't even be here. But we are. It's like in the great stories, Mr. Frodo. The ones that really mattered. Full of darkness and danger, they were. And sometimes you didn't want to know the end. Because how could the end be happy? How could the world go back to the way it was when so much bad had happened? But in the end, it's only a passing thing, this shadow. Even darkness must pass. A new day will come. And when the sun shines it will shine out the clearer. Those were the stories that stayed with you. That meant something, even if you were too small to understand why. But I think, Mr. Frodo, I do understand. I know now. Folk in those stories had lots of chances of turning back, only they didn't. They kept going. Because they were holding on to something.
Frodo: What are we holding onto, Sam?
Sam: That there's some good in this world, Mr. Frodo... and it's worth fighting for.

The Inundation of the Spring

THE INUNDATION of the Spring
Submerges every soul,
It sweeps the tenement away
But leaves the water whole.
In which the Soul, at first alarmed,
Seeks furtive for its shore,
But acclimated, gropes no more
For that Peninsular.
---Emily Dickinson

I might not really understand that poem, but yesterday was truly an inundated spring day. After working for almost eight hours scanning teacher/course evaluation forms, I really needed some exercise. Luckily I'm a member of the Coolest Ward Ever, and we had a hike planned to the Wind Caves up Logan Canyon just that very evening. So we went!

Now, if you're from around here at all, something might click into place at this point and you might ask, "But Beckie, how could you go hiking last night? Didn't it...rain last night?" To which I might reply, "Yes. But when has a little rain stopped a single's ward?" To which you might reply, "Dumb." But only if your name was Heidi Lamb.

Of all my roommates only Jenny came, the rest opting to stay clean and home. Yes, it was a little cloudy when we left, but hiking's always better when it's overcast. And the ward...well, it's only the first week of summer, but already this is looking to be my favorite summer ward EVER. So many people showed up, even with the threatening weather!

Anyway, so we carpooled up there and set off. I only brought a thin hoodie jacket, which I removed halfway up because the pace was brisk and it was quite warm. Then I put it back on at the top because the wind was brisk and the rain was quite cold. Within a space of three minutes it went from cool and clear to complete cloud surrounding us and hard, pelting rain.

The Wind Cave, by the way, was beautiful, though more likely formed from the receeding waters of Lake Bountiful than from wind itself, but hey, that's just what the sign said. It also told us to bring water bottles and wear sunscreen, and who ever liked that song anyway?

So we headed back down in the pouring rain. Jenny decided the mud made a "squooshing" sound. I asked her if squooshing was spelled with two 'o's or with one 'o' with an umlaut. Then we somehow started talking about zeugmas ("he ran track and for president") and sharing gross-out stories of dead and/or castrated animals - stories which I shall refrain from repeating here, or ever. It kept raining. We got wetter.

Well, you'll be happy to know I never slipped, nor did I see anyone else fall. We all made it down safely, although soaked to the bone from bukkits of rain. The weirdest was comparing the backs of our pant legs. Everyone was muddy but for some reason....mine were completely filthy. Soaking wet, and totally caked in dirt. It was awesome!

Bad news: for some dumb reason, I took my phone. One of the warning signs that you're overly cell phone dependent? Bringing it with you on a hike. You don't even get reception up there! But I had it, in my pocket the whole time. It, too, was wet, very wet. So if you know me and you're reading this and you haven't been able to reach me in some time...know that my phone is currently turned off and drying in a bag of rice. (My friend Lucas told me that's how to dry it out even faster...) I'll let you know if it works! If you don't hear from me in a few days, it probably didn't.

Writing about music is like dancing about architecture.

Music is my boyfriend
Music is my girlfriend
Music is my dead end
Music is my imaginary friend

You've probably heard that song. (Thanks, iPod commercials!) Except this time it's true. Music keeps you company when you need it. As Jimmy says, "I'm not alone 'cause the TV's on, yeah." When you're walking with your headphones, you're not walking by yourself. When you're sitting in your room, your speakers sit beside you. When you're driving, the radio's driving with you.

Music is my brother
Music is my great-grand-daughter
Music is my sister
Music is my favorite mistress

It says what I want to say when I can't say it. It reminds me of good times and it makes new times. I listen to it in my head even when my ears hear nothing.

Music is my beach house
Music is my hometown
Music is my king-sized bed
Music is where I meet with my friends

All that being said...let us not forget what Elder Russel M Nelson said on Sunday about the "power and protection provided by worthy music." Music has the power to facilitate spiritual nourishment, it has healing power, it can overcome language barriers.

And "Overindulging in loud music can make you spiritually deaf."

And "Don't degrade yourself. Listen to music worthy of you."

And "That which does not edify is not of God."

And

"Delete the rubbish from your minds and your iPods."

Ben Folds His Paper Hot-Dog Style

So, here's the story. My roommate Heather had been planning for at least a month to go see Ben Folds in concert down in Salt Lake, and I was jealous. I love Ben Folds...he and I go way back. But I didn't know if my love was worth $22-40.

That is, until one of Heather's Salt Lake friends backed out on Monday, two days before the concert, and Heather asked me first if I wanted it. Gasp! But I also had a "portfolio conference" to be at that night, so I told her to ask other people first so I wouldn't have to make the decision ;). Unfortunately, none of the other people on her list could go either so...I decided, what the heck, I'll go too! And I got way excited.

Until the next day, when Heather texted me that her friend had been misinformed- they really didn't have an extra ticket. Well, you know, these things happen, and I understood, and now I didn't have to worry about getting in touch with my professor either. So I was fine.

Until the next day, when Thomas called me. I was just putting the finishing touches on my portfolio, minding my own business, while he'd been listening to the radio and calling it up... and WINNING TWO FREE TICKETS TO THE BEN FOLDS CONCERT! Lucky for me that I'm his favorite sibling! And lucky for me that I already had a ride! And lucky for me that I emailed my teacher to let her know we could meet up another day! It seemed things were finally looking up for ol' Beckie.

And then a lot of other stuff happened on the ride down and the ride back up, involving ten chicken nuggets, Montevideo Uruguay, a box of Krispy Kremes, and getting home at 2 AM in the rain. But what I really wanted to blog are these:

There they are! Ben, his drummer, and his guitarist.

And the following are "Movies" but let's just call them "Pictures" because the sound on them is...well, it isn't.


"Landed"




"Annie Waits"



"Still Fighting It"



"Lullabye"

So, the sound quality's pretty incredible - I mean, they were taken on cell phones! - but I'd definitely recommend the actual music. Ch-ch-check it out.

And the best part of it all was getting to go see an extremely talented performer and sing along with Thomas. Thanks, buddy! It was especially worth it because it was free!!

I Still Haven't Found What I'm Looking For

One Art

The art of losing isn't hard to master;
so many things seem filled with the intent
to be lost that their loss is no disaster.

Lose something every day.  Accept the fluster
of lost door keys, the hour badly spent.
The art of losing isn't hard to master.

Then practice losing farther, losing faster:
places, and names, and where it was you meant
to travel.  None of these will bring disaster.

I lost my mother's watch.  And look! my last, or
next-to-last, of three loved houses went.
The art of losing isn't hard to master.

I lost two cities, lovely ones.  And, vaster,
some realms I owned, two rivers, a continent.
I miss them, but it wasn't a disaster.

---Even losing you (the joking voice, a gesture
I love) I shan't have lied.  It's evident
the art of losing's not too hard to master
though it may look like (Write it!) like disaster.

-- Elizabeth Bishop

"I don't want that to go away. I don't want to forget."
"I'm sorry, Dory, but I . . . do."
--Finding Nemo

HEART, we will forget him!
You and I, to-night!
You may forget the warmth he gave,
I will forget the light.
When you have done, pray tell me,	5
That I my thoughts may dim;
Haste! lest while you're lagging,
I may remember him!

--Emily Dickinson

"I'm ready to get hurt again."
---Michael Scott, "The Office"

YOU left me, sweet, two legacies,—
A legacy of love
A Heavenly Father would content,
Had He the offer of;
You left me boundaries of pain	5
Capacious as the sea,
Between eternity and time,
Your consciousness and me.

--Emily Dickinson

"It"

Sorry, Heather, you've tagged a slacker. It's been like a month since you told me I'm supposed to write 8 things about myself here and I'm just now getting around to it. I probably won't even pass it on after this. Fun game!

Oh, who am I kidding...I love to talk about myself (who doesn't!?) and this is a great excuse. Right then: If you really knew me you would know...

1. I'm very gullible. Though I'll pretend to talk back to you just to find loopholes in your own argument, I actually believe almost everything I hear. Ask my family if I once thought that Michael Crawford was dead. (I'm not entirely sure I even knew who that was at that time!) This especially applies to - yes, I'm about to reveal this - INFOMERCIALS. They just...work on me. All their little ploys and selling tactics sound so agreeable, then desirable, then necessary. My thoughts:

"What?? They're throwing in three quality cookbooks with the QuickChop?!"

"Wait...there's more: If I call within the next ten minutes, I can get TWO Amazing Rotisserie Chicken Grills for the price of one! It's a great gift idea!"

Usually after the program ends, I'm fine and the marketing scheme ceases its gruesome power over me. Though I have convinced my mom to buy me several amazing gadgets As Seen On TV. Our Magic Bullet Blender and FoodSavers are both safely broken on the storage shelf in our basement.

2. Bandwagons: I jump on them. Well, ok, at the beginning. Once they start to fill up, it gets really crowded and many times I'm shoved over to the side so I just jump off. There are a lot of things that sometimes I just like because they're popular - American Idol, In 'n' Out, Facebook...

Speaking of jumping, I also enjoy following various TV shows just until they "jump the shark."


3. I think movie spoofs are the greatest things ever.

4. Cats rule, dogs drool. Cats are much cuter, softer, cuddlier, and cleaner. Dogs...I enjoy like grandchildren: fun to play with, fine at other people's houses, but not for me to take home.

And I used to have an imaginary pet white Siberian tiger.

5. I want to change the world. No, seriously, I do! (I'm a closet idealist.) I want to teach kids to love writing, I want to read books to them that make them as excited as I was when I read them the first time, I want to get them as into history as Mr Felt did for us in 10th and 12th grade. Good teachers are heroes and heroines! What you learn in school can affect you for the rest of your life! Children are the future!!

6. I have a high tolerance for repetition. Conversation-wise, sometimes it's even necessary; to get me to really understand something, I may need to hear you say it over and over and over. I can re-watch movies - good ones, anyway - endlessly, and it's like starting with a blank slate. I love to go back and re-read my favorite books. Even in music: I can handle those almost-annoying techno or dream-mo songs that get like 4 minutes in and haven't started yet, or live jam-sessions that seem to go over the same part again and again. New things are great, but I can handle repetitiveness. (Guess it's a good thing Ima be a teacher then, eh?)

7. I love correcting others' grammar, but not necessarily speaking correctly myself. It's way fun being the annoying Simpson's "Linguo" robot, while at the same time purporting the idea that language changes, evolves, and never has one true, "right" answer. Ha. The privileges of an English major!

8. I haven't thought that far ahead.

Ok... Now that it's come down to it, perhaps I do wish to send the tag along.... Alan, you're it.

Everyone else, get a blog already.

SCED: Where Brevity Dies and Education Languishes

"Education: That which discloses to the wise and disguises from the fool their lack of understanding. " - Ambrose Bierce

The above: a trait readily applicable to and found in significant amounts in my university's Secondary Education program, in which I am currently enrolled. Also known as: A waste of time and good money. Sure, I know they mean well, and there really are many good teachers working hard for the preparation of us preservice teachers. But as a whole...the program itself is tedious, repetitive, and incredibly dull.

Take today for instance: carefully extracting myself from the comfort of my warm bed, hauling up to campus, entering the classroom...and our teacher, alas, is not there. Of course, that's not a big surprise, since in this course, our teacher is literally never there - it's a Distance Education class, which meets here in Logan but the professor lives and broadcasts from Vernal. What's also not a big surprise, though, is that she's not even broadcasting today. Even the TA doesn't know why, acts nonchalant, and informs us we are to present our "problem-solving activity ideas" for class today and then we're free to leave. We look at each other in disbelief but act it out anyway, "presenting" what we'd written in five minutes last class. (Incidentally, our last class was the previous Wednesday, since we've already been informed that class is permanently canceled every Friday for the rest of the semester.) There aren't that many ideas to present - only half the class even bothers to show up anymore... Because when we do have class, it's usually to listen to lectures about how lectures shouldn't be used in classrooms anymore, in favor of more active, group-oriented, hands-on activities. Not even the irony can keep me awake anymore!

Were this kind of situation restricted to one or two classes, I suppose it would be bearable. But, ever since I finished the English program to move over to the Education one, the quality of classes, professors, coursework, and education has decreased significantly. Instead of analyzing literature or creating and comparing essays, or studying history and interpreting facts, classroom discussions are little more than opinion-sharing, not unlike how I might envision a group counseling session. We're all a little long-winded and love the sound of our own voice. And it's not that I don't care about everyone's experiences.

It just seems we're so intent on talking about education that we don't really get...educated.

It's been a long while since I really felt challenged in these classes. This doesn't mean that I'm overly smart; on the contrary, I feel like many other students are more prepared than I, which makes it that much more pathetic that we're not being pushed to our full potential. One of my teachers doesn't even give deadlines - she just lets us turn it in whenever we'd like, cancels class all the time, etc. Not that I mind her cancelling class - without fail, every time I'm there I ask myself why I even bothered to show up. So oppressively dull....

Yet in a way, it makes me want even more to become a teacher. Sometimes learning from bad examples motivates you all the more strongly.