Day 5: There are no Lost Causes

20^th of March, Year 2015 was the day we watched Freedom Writers. I was actually glad because I would have never thought that we’d still experience watching a film in class. Also, we had a small group sharing after the movie. Freedom Writers is a true-to-life film about a certain Room 203 class. Erin Gruwell, the new teacher for this multi-racial high school class, met several challenges in facilitating attitudinal change of her students. She wanted them to be motivated to learn and to appreciate education and life. The class consists of several students who had experienced several difficulties in life influenced by violence, gang culture, peer pressure, family traditions, self-esteem issues and other associated problems. In the end, the teacher was able to earn the trust of her students and the students experienced this "change" their teacher was talking about. 

It was a very good film as it depicts life, its complications and its blessings. It was during the sharing that I realized we have learned a lot from watching the film. One of the things I would highlight is that you should never give up, in any aspect of life. Never give up. You have to believe that there is something you can do to influence change. You have to believe that there you are affecting change even if you do not observe any improvement. Always find the good in something. Never think that something or someone is a lost cause. It is up to you to if you really want something good to happen. It is hard, yes. But you should believe that you are harder.

As a future physical therapist, it is the thrust of the profession to maximize the mobility and function of our clients so they can achieve a better quality of life. As a therapist, you should never treat your clients as lost causes. Even if it would come to a point that the progress is really slow, see the good in it. Affecting change is not an easy and instant task, it takes time and effort. Whether you like it or not, as a therapist, it is your job to become teachers that would facilitate change in all aspects of a person.