Natalie Gilbert: Topic of Personal Choice

The movie we watched in class was about a man named Hirata who travels on a pilgrimage to Iceland to provide closure to his parents and their death along a riverside. In this movie he goes through many stages of emotion and development. The other characters throughout the movie hinder and help him on his journey. This flux of setbacks and helpful instances are demonstrated through the acts of other characters. It is these characters who all in someway act as spiritual guides to Hirata. This movie demonstrates that in life there to are helpers and hinders, but is from both that we develop and learn. In the end Hirata acknowledges what he has learned. Without these guides, even when considered negative at the time, Hirata would not have learned and experience his pilgrimage completely. In life we have to appreciate not only the good but the bad. I believe everything happens for a reason and even the most difficult situations help us learn and should help us become better people.