Reflections of Life produces gorgeous short films that uplift the personal stories of ordinary people, with the goal of sharing ideas and inspiring change. We feel hugely blessed to feature video-stories that filmmakers Michael and Justine capture with exquisite expertise, and which so beautifully illustrate grateful living principles and practices. In this short film we hear from Trui Snyman.

Learn more about Reflections of Life (formerly Green Renaissance) through our Grateful Changemaker feature.

Questions for Reflection

  • What feelings/thoughts/questions surface for you in viewing Trui’s story?
  • How does Trui’s story move you?

We invite you to share your reflections below the video transcript that follows.

Video Transcript

I read somewhere that worry is like sitting in a rocking chair. It keeps you busy but it gets you nowhere.

If you asked me six years ago if I was happy or if I wanted to see tomorrow or if I wanted to see next year I would have said, no. That’s a really terrible place to be. I didn’t even smile. Because life was too busy, that’s why.

We race so quickly through life that we’re blind to it, we’re deaf to it, we’re numb to it. We’ve become desensitized because we are in too much of a hurry. Did I notice the phases of the moon? Did I notice whether it was winter, summer, autumn, or spring? There was no time for that.

Should we not rather look at life through the eyes of a child? There is something new to discover, every day. What feeds your soul? If small things don’t feed your soul, what will?

People are hard, hard, hard. People are hard on each other, people are hard on themselves. Tenderness… We could all do with more tenderness. If you feel you need ten minutes to yourself just to sit and relax, why not. We have the right to invest in ourselves. Half an hour, just half an hour each day. Maybe you use that half hour to walk outside. Whether you shut yourself in your bedroom and read a book or you lie and soak in an herbal bath, that time is just for you. Forget the emails, forget the telephone.

My quality of life and my health have improved, just by taking things a little more slowly. Do yourself a favor and be a little more gentle with yourself. So yes, life is actually beautiful. But I’m still learning. Starting to learn…to be more gentle with myself.

To support Michael and Justine in their film-making journey, visit Reflections of Life.


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About the author

Justine and Michael are a creative couple living in South Africa.  Their project, Reflections of Life (formerly Green Renaissance), works to spread positive stories that reflect the wonder of the world. With the goal of sharing ideas and inspiring change, they produce gorgeous short films that are posted online and available for anyone, anywhere, to watch and share freely.

 

Through their films, they explore what it means to be human. They touch on topics that can often be difficult for people to discuss – from loss of a loved one to aging and retirement to friendship to love and courage – universal themes that we all deal with at some stage in our lives.

 

By sharing these stories, Justine and Michael hope to remind us of one simple truth – that we are all human – that inside our hearts and minds, we are all facing similar challenges.  We have so much to learn from each other, and our connections run so much deeper and stronger than we think. Learn more and support their work at reflectionsof.life.