Forrest Gump and Me

FORREST GUMP AND ME

by Antonio C. Antonio

April 23, 2014

FORREST GUMP:  “That day, for no particular reason, I decided to go for a little run.  So I ran to the end of the road.  And when I got there, I thought maybe I'd run to the end of town.  And when I got there, I thought maybe I'd just run across Greenbow County.  And I figured, since I run this far, maybe I'd just run across the great state of Alabama.  And that's what I did.  I ran clear across Alabama.  For no particular reason I just kept on going. I ran clear to the ocean.  And when I got there, I figured, since I'd gone this far, I might as well turn around, just keep on going.  When I got to another ocean, I figured, since I'd gone this far, I might as well just turn back, keep right on going.”  This is just one of the many memorable narrations and quotations from the movie “Forrest Gump.”

Forrest started running for what he thought was “for no particular reason”.  But in the course of his wandering and aimless run, he inspired a lot of people to believe in what they do best… a car sticker maker, after a short conversation with Forrest, made millions for conceptualizing a bumper sticker that simply said:  “Shit Happens”; and, a t-shirt print designer made a huge bundle of dollars after he came up with the “smiley” idea which he visualized from the imprint of Forrest’s face on a t-shirt Forrest used to wipe his muddy face.  “For no particular reason,” “shit happens” and “smiley” was born.  Later, Forrest realized that all his running was really not for no particular reason.  He finally figured out that he was actually running away from his bitter past… so he stopped running, turned around and confronted his troubles.  Curiously, Forrest attracted enough attention plus a respectable number of followers in his “for no particular reason” run.  I guess it’s safe to say that most people never do anything without a purpose.

ANTON ANTONIO:  “That day, I decided to put up an environmental advocacy Facebook community page called “Landscape Ecology UPOU.”  For about a year now, I tirelessly kept posting pictures, images, articles and literature to increase the level of awareness and popularize Landscape Ecology.  Later, I found myself doing the same for a Facebook secret group called “UPOU ENRM UPlanders” then later for “Magallanes” (a village association)… although the focus was no longer on Landscape Ecology alone but on environmental matters in general.  “I figured, since I’d gone this far, I might as well just turn around, keep right on going.” (Gump)  Now, I even created a blogsite (antonantonio.blogspot.com) with the title “Just My Little Thoughts” (which focuses on the environment and natural resources management) to further the cause of protecting Mother Nature.”

What I started was not “for no particular reason.”  I consciously embarked on this often misunderstood journey with the hope that later or even later or even much later or even much much later people will learn to appreciate the value of a healthy Mother Earth.

Just my little thoughts…