A Big Life: Breaking Free from My Past to Embrace the Future

Shame, guilt, rage and resentment aren't part of our natural emotional state. And so when these feelings linger from past hurts, we often use denial to hide the original issues. But just like our physical health, our emotional well-being needs attention. Since emotional wounds aren't visible, we might think they'll go away if we ignore them, but they only grow worse in the dark. These wounds need our care and awareness to heal; otherwise, they just fester.

Healing deep emotional wounds takes courage because it means trusting your own feelings. It involves naming and understanding these emotions honestly. By having the courage to face and deal with shame, guilt, and other baggage, you start the process of healing and open yourself up to a more fulfilling life, ultimately improving your relationships with yourself and others.

“Don’t hide your heart but reveal it, so that mine might be revealed, and I might accept what I am capable of. ” - Rumi

Featuring Edward Celnicker.
Filmed in Portland, Oregon, USA.

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Who is Reflections of Life? We are Justine and Michael (previously known as Green Renaissance). We use our passion for filmmaking and our love of storytelling, to remind our audience of one simple truth – that we are all human. The more that we understand and believe in this interconnectedness, the more we will treat ourselves, one another, and planet earth with a greater sense of compassion.

Filming - by Michael Raimondo
Editing - by Justine du Toit
Sound mix - by Tamryn Breakey

The following music tracks are used in this film, all sourced from Epidemic Sound:
Weightless Moments - by Mathilda Skonare
Friend or Foe - by Johannes Bornlof
What Happens Next - by Christophe Gorman
In Another Lifetime - by Christian Andersen
Dragonflies - by Helmut Schenker
Reliance of Dawn - by DEX 1200

A huge thank you to these guys, who gave so generously of their to time to help with translations, enabling us to provide subtitles in the following languages:
Chinese (Traditional and Simplified) - by Shun-Ying Lu
Croatian - by Davor Bobanac
Czech - by Katarína Božek
Dutch - by Karla Greven
English - by Justine du Toit
French - by Amélie Macoin
German - by Tanja Pütz
Greek - by Vicky Polychroni
Hungarian - by Ditta Ódor
Indonesian - by Ary Nuansa
Italian - by Grazia Gironella
Kazakh - by Mereinur Tabuldin
Korean - by Hotae Devin Noh
Macedonian - by Lidija Pusevska Markovska
Polish - by Anna Konieczna
Portuguese - by Sibylle Steinpass and Lucivani Valvassori
Slovak - by Zuzana Beratsova
Slovenian - by Tadej Pasar
Spanish - by Paty Aguirre
Swedish - by Julia Alvar
Thai - by Ornwara Diloknawarit
Vietnamese - by Thi Le

#overcomingtrauma #selfimprovement #innerpeace #emotionalhealing

[xolanikondile]

"He said you think you're a failure. But you're a great success." 😢

[HedaLuiza]

I don't know why, but I started crying, when I heard the words: You are not failure. You are succes.

[AptusStercore]

Right before he started reading Thoreau, he stated, "We're born with all these emotions, with all these feelings, and to me, letting yourself be fully involved with the way one can interact with the world, that's being human, " and to me that was the most beautiful quote in the whole piece. Lovely line to keep with me. Thank you for sharing.

[dianamachado]

I loved it when he said, "I want to live life with all my emotions." Most of us just want to live life with positive emotion, not with negative emotion, but both are important. We need to feel it deeply

[edmundpotrzeba]

Loved your video, loved you. Im 74 and have spent the last 40 years unrapping the parcell of my unhappiness so listening to your video brought back so many memories and tears. Im a much happier man now than i have ever been although i still get some deeply sad days . I feel i have so much in common with you not the least that i believe that my emotions are the cornorstone of my existance. As someone once said, life is wonderful or so i feel, my love and respect to you for being so brave to share your life with us. ❤️👍

[caroledrury]

I actually watched this man transform in front of my eyes from grief to beauty!

[Rlaplante]

Wow, what a powerful testimony of a man who climbed out of the pit of emotional wounds and despair, to make a major course correction that required strength, courage, and transparency to overcome and live a life of restoration!

[thomasdecarlo]

“It’s only there if you have an intention to see it”

[Contemplate-sp]

Everyone who reads this, we don't know each other and probably never will but I wish you all the best in life and all the luck in the world

[perlefisker]

I find it simply amazing how deep the trauma is hidden - always. This beautiful man remembers the deep truth his therapist told him more than forty years ago, and he gets emotional. The same happens to me so often.
Thank you very much for these beautiful and uplifting videos.

[lawrence]

Is it a coincidence that I feel about 20X calmer than before I watched this? I think not. 👏

[LCLW]

Literally just had to stop as I was shocked & so hurt for you that I have tears streaming down my face that your mother would say such a thing to you especially on your wedding day! Obviously your parents had their own "issues" and you chose & made a conscious decision NOT to be either of them despite how you were raised & traumatized yourself. Thank you for sharing such a personal story with us.

[Mystic_Paths]

The transformation shared in this story is so inspiring; it’s a great reminder that our future is in our hands.

[Tmrfe]

My 62nd birthday is this week. I don’t feel old, but I’m acting older. And I mean that in a positive sense. My life isn’t slipping away, it’s unfolding exactly as it should. I watch videos in this series, and my true regret is time. I would love to meet the folks who record these, and have a chance to get to know them. Having an opportunity to see them, enhances my day, but leaves me wanting more…which in turn reminds me…open myself to others along the way, and you’ll meet them. Such beautiful people, grateful for the effort put forth to have me see this. Thank you all. See you soon! 😊

[leeakane]

“Sometimes there's so much beauty in the world, I feel like I can't take it, and my heart is just going to cave in.”

[a.mie.]

I think, I understand this likeable man very well. Nature as a source of mental and physical health, of beauty and harmony is equally important to me - the more, the older I get. And I absolutely feel the earthquake of that therapist's remark: " You think, you are a failure, but I think, you are a big success. " Wonderful.

[pauldaniele]

These videos are incredible! Thank you for changing lives and saving lives, helping people live their best lives!

[solgast]

Down to earth and up towards the skies. That is life and these interviews reflect that beautifully.

[jasasyiken]

Really resonated with this story. I think this is what life is about. To be born empty, then to be told who we are and later, to discover the truth. With the truth, we can the erase the identity that were given and become our authentic version of- one that we believe is who we are and that which makes us happiest. The same Henry Thoreau quote changed my life too. ❤

[agnesbonnet]

The precious secret of our humanity: we are not a failure, but a huge success. And we do not know it yet. Our truth amidst pain and doubt.