Heaven on Earth

An interesting story has been circulating on the internet regarding the new box office hit "Avatar" and depression and suicide (if you can believe that). Here is an excerpt from one such story:

'Avatar' may have enthralled worldwide audiences with its imagery of an utopian alien world but movie-goers have complained of depression and even suicidal thoughts after watching the sci-fi hit. Fans are seemingly finding it hard to separate fact from fiction and Internet forums have been flooded with posts by movie-goers plagued with suicidal thoughts about not being able to visit the planet Pandora, reported CNN online. North American fan site 'Avatar Forums' has received 2,000 posts under a thread entitled 'Ways to cope with the depression of the dream of Pandora being intangible'.

Forum administrator Philippe Baghdassarian said, "The movie was so beautiful and it showed something we don't have here on earth. I think people saw we could be living in a completely different world and that caused them to be depressed."

This is sad to me on many levels. One of which is that we have such a beautiful planet, of which the sea was a major inspiration for much of the landscape on Pandora. It is so unfortunate to me that the reason people are upset is because this plant is showing us something we don't have here on earth. While the floating mountains that defy gravity may not exist, aliens do... creatures on our own REAL planet yet to be discovered. There is no beauty imaginable that does not exist on earth. Perhaps the real investment shouldn't be in these big budget films, or entertainment for fulfillment, but in our future on a planet that is so diverse, yet so fragile. Perhaps the reason Pandora was so beautiful was because it had yet to be "harvested" for instant human gratification. I say we use this year to take a step back and admire the wonder and beauty of our own planet. God gave us a precious gift and it's time to appreciate it for what it is.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xjaNzZt2olk