"If one advances confidently in the direction of his dreams, and endeavors to live the life which he has imagined, he will meet with a success unexpected in common hours. . . . If you have built castles in the air, your work need not be lost; that is where they should be. Now put the foundations under them."
— Henry David Thoreau
Say the word "perseverance" and most of us would point to our ancestors and their struggles to survive. They worked hard, faced unforeseen obstacles, disciplined themselves and, in the midst of daily life, persevered against all odds.
The Great Day is a documentary directed by Pascal Plisson whose On the Way to School presented the challenges of pursuing an education. This film tells the story of four children whose perseverance is the foundation of their dreams. It fires their capacity to practice regularly and to make the most of their physical, mental, and emotional powers.
We were immensely impressed with the grit and the resilience of these young people. A 15-year-old girl from Benares, India, studies to pass a test to gain a scholarship admission to a prestigious engineering school. A 19-year-old man in Uganda works hard in Queen Elizabeth National Park with dreams of becoming a ranger who protects endangered animals from poachers. An 11-year-old girl trains her lithe young body to bend in odd positions before her audition for an elite circus in Singapore. An eleven-year-old Cuban boy must show his boxing skills in hopes of attending Havana Sport Academy.
