Pursuing Happyness

Yesterday, after watching UCLA's nerve wracking 65-64 win over USC, my friend Christy and I went to go see the Pursuit of Happyness.

The movie is about a homeless man trying to make it as a stock broker and his absoultely adorable son. If you haven't seen the movie and don't want to know the slightest hint of what happens, you can stop reading here... but I think its safe to say that most people who go see a movie that came out during Christmas know that the movie will have a happy ending.

As inspiring as this movie was, I had to remind myself that the story of the main character- based on a real life person, is an anamoly. And as hard working and determined as people can be in that situation, its hard to break the cycle. To be honest I hadn't been exposed to much homelessness growing up since I lived in a suburb. But when I went to college, I was shocked to see how many homeless people roam Westwood. It was hard to see. I even felt bad for the homeless man who I tried to get a restraining order because I knew he was not ok mentally, but there did not seem to be anywhere for him to go to get help.

So my little government/law brain couldn't help but thinking during the whole movie and afterwards about what others can do to help the situation. And how do you balance helping people without making them dependent on your help? Not an easy question.