It takes a rare event–or series of events–to rival Oscar on the lifestyle pages and TV screens of our country, and this year there was a big one. Of all of the awards, gossip, parties, fashion, blogs, photos and other hoopla that surrounds Oscar Night, I found myself inspired by one very simple and very public proposition that a reflective person could clearly detect:
Either we can make it on our own or we can’t. As a person of faith and the benefactor of mentors, I choose the latter. Let me explain it in two words:
Charlie Sheen.
On a night when Best Actor Colin Firth portrayed a stammerer who needed assistance from someone who could help–an inspiration which drove “The King’s Speech” to the Best Picture prize–Charlie Sheen is pronouncing on what seems like every talk show on television that he, himself is all he needs…that he has overcome his addiction problems by himself.
“I closed my eyes and made it so with the power of my mind,” he proclaimed on “The Today Show” when discussing his “new” sobriety, after having undergone “at-home” treatment through a crisis management center he dubbed the “Sober Valley Lodge.”
He went on to discuss those who fall back from their sobriety efforts as “trolls” and “weak,” and had several un-flattering comments for those who seek to help, including Alcoholics Anonymous. You can see video clips and read more about it here, and you’ll see him all over the screen in the coming days via “20/20,” “Good Morning America,” and a host of other shows.
Contrast this with the words of “The King’s Speech” producer Emile Sherman’s humility: “To have been part of a film that’s touched and moved people so much all around the world has been just a huge privilege and we’re indebted to everyone standing behind us and you know, our financiers took a huge risk on this film. It’s not an obvious film to back.”
Then, backstage, Sherman went further, explaining that he felt the true inspiration for audiences was their connection to “someone who reached out for help.” We all need to do that, and to the degree that “The King’s Speech” modeled it not only in its message but in the style of its creators, kudos to them…and prayers for Charlie Sheen.