Don't judge a book by its cover - here's what I learnt recently

Don’t judge a book by its cover.

 We’ve heard this saying before.  I got to experience a reminder recently.

I finished the book 𝐓𝐡𝐞 𝐏𝐚𝐫𝐢𝐬 𝐀𝐩𝐚𝐫𝐭𝐦𝐞𝐧𝐭 by Kelly Bowen over the week.

It was a wonderful fiction read, set during a very real historical moment, WWII. The book was heartbreaking yet enthralling in the same measure. It also piqued my interest to find out more about this terrible period for humanity.

Is it worth looking back?

I’ve never been a great consumer of history. But I admit I stepped into a rabbit hole on this one, the more I read about the 1940s and the Great War. Perhaps it’s the intense adversity that people all over the world were plunged into, that brought out so many stories of courage and kindness in the darkest times for mankind.

Now, if you have not watched Downfall, this isn't a movie review🎬 . (𝗧𝗟;𝗗𝗥 it’s a German historical war drama that’s spawned a thousand parodies 😊- the movie speaks of the final days of Adolf Hitler in the battle of Berlin in 1945.)

The actor who played Hitler in the film, the late Bruno Ganz is a Swiss actor who’s widely acclaimed in German television & film. Ganz’s film career spans over 60 years and countless movies/theatre productions.

The more I read on about WWII, 'Downfall' and then Ganz, the more I learnt - Did you know that Ganz was one of the holders of a ‘Ring’ of Prowess awarded to great actors?

The Iffland-Ring is a ring given to the holder considered the most significant and most worthy actor of the German-speaking theatre', in the opinion of the previous holder who has passed it to him by will (credit Wikipedia)

Finishing this book flipped my perspective completely about the way I used to regard history (i.e. History is ‘boring’).

So what’s the insight worth sharing?  

We're taught to 'not look back'. Could we learn as much from the past?

1. Learn as much from the past as with the future. We’re at a time today where people are pondering about the ‘future of work’, the post pandemic scenario...or even how humanity will be in the next century. Yet in contemporary business-speak, we're exhorted to ‘keep moving forward’, and ‘not look back’.

(Worth a mention: the Doomsday Clock is set every year by a board of scientists. It depicts how close humanity is to 'midnight' i.e. Armageddon. We're now 100 seconds away to midnight).

Perhaps reminding ourselves of lessons learnt from the past may help prepare us for the future.

2. In periods of personal adversity, setbacks are only temporary. Yet it helps to temper our anxiety, if you take time to pen it down and relook at it.

I've found it helps me personally when I take time to write. Not just the wonderful stuff I experience, but also downtimes ('bad feelings') that I am unable to articulate in the spur of the moment. Find that inner space to step back. Share your story if you're up for it. You never know what that might inspire in the next person.

3. Don’t judge a book by its cover.  Case in point. I thought history was boring. How wrong could I be 😂

Have you had a recent experience that flipped your perspective of the way you see things?

I’ll love to hear your comments below :)