Fridays are good

Fridays are especially good when I'm only required to work 4 hours of them. In celebration of me not working too hard, lets do The Friday Five:
1. Name one movie you wish everybody could watch.
The Power of One is a real tear-jerker but it's also a thought provoking and insightful movie.

2. Name two books you wish everybody could read.
The Time Traveler's Wife is one of my favorites. It's definitely not for kids to read, but it's a great story. I couldn't put it down.
A Tale of Two Cities or really anything by Charles Dickens would also be on my list. I really have a hard time reading non-fiction so books by famous leaders just aren't on my list.

3. Name three goals you wish everybody could achieve.

Travel around the world. It changed my life. It helped me realize what I see through the lens of my culture, and recognize that there is such a thing. It's much harder to understand until I'm forced to see through another person's lens.

Make a contribution to the community (world, country, neighborhood, group, whatever). I work with a lot of people who have the potential to contribute and don't. It has a clear impact on self worth, and the worth of the community people share.

Find what makes you happy, it makes life more fun.

4. Name four people you wish everybody could know.

One - Someone of a different race and religion

Two - Someone of a different intellectual ability

Three - Someone from a different country who speaks a different language

Four - Someone with a different talent or interest

5. Name five places you wish everybody could visit. I'll do one from each of the continents I've been to:

North America - Minneapolis is my favorite place here. Come on by any time. You're always welcome. If you're from here, Cuba is an amazing place to visit. I recommend going with an entourage of about 500 Americans. I promise, the welcome mat will be rolled out. (No, seriously, it will.)

South America - I was sad to have missed the cloud forests in Venezuela, but Brazil was really something to see.

Europe - I liked Greece even a little better than Italy. It was really fun to see all these places I'd learned about in school for years. (I think no one reading this blog can really call me a nerd. It would be the pot calling the kettle the same thing.)

Asia - Vietnam. It's really the only Asian country that speaks American English (everywhere else is British English), and in the south Americans are welcome. I met a lot of men my dad's age who spoke English from fighting in the war. It's also an unbelievably poor country. Quite startling.

Africa - Malawi. My heart always misses Malawi. Even if you're not a Christian, go to church on Sunday, any church in any city or village, and enjoy the music. It will warm you up and give you chills at the same time. Simply amazing.