I have always been a big fan of Goldie Hawn, ever since I saw her in Private Benjamin. I was still a kid when I saw that movie, but it stuck in my memory, since Goldie's character there was so tenacious and determined, that it taught me, at that young age, that if you just work hard at what you want, no one and nothing can really stop you! Even if people around you think you're not really a fit to that dream that you want!
Well, I got a copy of her autobiography months ago in a bargain bookstore in SM Fairview. I got it at a bargain price of P125 instead of the usual one thousand pesos for a hardbound book. Unfortunately, I never got around to reading it till a few weeks back.
Fortunately, since I started reading it, I've been posting quotes of hers on my Facebook account since they really are enlightening and inspiring. I also got to learn that Goldie first trained as a dancer, and that her becoming a comedic actress just came accidentally! Imagine that! She thought she would build a career on being a professional dancer and eventually became famous for being a comedic actress! And an Oscar-winning actress, at that!
I am going to post here some quotes that I like from her book and my thoughts on them -
1. 'Success isn't a bad thing but sometimes we put too much emphasis on the things that appear to be the outward signs of success. The real success is how you handle your success. How generous you are with it. I believe that success only enhances who you are. It confronts you with the truth about yourself. People who are nasty become nastier. People who are happy become happier. People who are mean hoard their money and live in fear for the rest of their life that they will lose it. People who are generous use their gifts to help people and try to make the world a better place.'
- Probably my most favorite part of the book. It's a beautiful reflection and something that has influenced me and made me reassess how I've been living my life. Yes, success has also come to me and I've realized that there's more to it that I can do. That I have to be more generous with my gifts.
2. 'Change is the key. Whatever our choices are, good or bad, we must learn from them, we must change and we must move on.'
- I have already learned the art of moving on, even at an earlier age. I guess when many of my relatives died when I was still in Grade 3, I realized then that nothing is permanent in this world and those that you love will pass on to the other side. That was in 1980 and those deaths imprinted so much in my life that I try not to attach myself to material things, or to just stand up again when I fail at something, and take note why I failed in the first place. What I learned here is that even in my successes, I also have to take note at why I succeeded so I could use that in my next project in life!
3. 'The choices we make can change the course of our lives. It is not the course of our lives that changes us. The road doesn't come to you; you go to the road'
- I love this quote very much. Yes, I have to go to the road. I have to make things happen in my life. If I just stay and stand like a bystander, nada will happen. I have to go to the road!
4. 'When we strip away the things that seem important and go back to the basics we discover that all we really have is each other.'
- Another beautiful quote from the book. I realized this when Typhoon Ondoy hit our house and virtually flooded the first floor of the house, and we lost most of the stuff there. That stripping away of material things, and even the stripping of all the memories of my previous life, I discovered that the family that was with me everyday, was the one that really mattered. Ondoy was a blessing in a way, since it weaned me from my attachment to material things and branded logos and symbols of status and success. Really, just a deluge of rain and water can humble even the most snooty spirit.
5. 'The key is to look at our gifts, understand their power and modulate them realistically. Understand how important it is to honor them. Accept responsibility for them.'
- I love this quote since it puts into perspective my responsibilities with the gifts God has given me. Our individual gifts are indeed powerful, and so we owe it to Him, to use it wisely and be responsible for it. By honoring these gifts, we get to contribute to the growth of society and to the greatness of mankind!
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