Opening Our Eyes

Opening Our Eyes, Global Stories About The Power of One, how about the power of two, how about two women, how about the power of family, a mother and daughter if you will. www.openingoureyesmovie.com.  Director, Gail Mooney and daughter, Erin Kelly, brilliantly laid out a travel map that required time, patience, and heart while these two skillfully covered 19 countries in 99 days.  Stones In The Color of Rare and Ankh Entertainment Productions had the opportunity to drop in on the screening of Opening Our Eyes on March 24 at the West Hollywood Council Chamber Screening Room.

Director, Gail Mooney and Kelly Mooney’s Production’s, Erin Kelly, revealed how they took a simple vacation idea, and turned it into an educational experience that one could never learn in any University.  Now, sometimes our bag of rare stones have a mind of their own, and so, I didn’t know how they would all react at the screening, however, my good friend, Angel Burns, was after all, the Executive Producer, and so, our bag of stones were actually surrounded by an Angel who made them feel right at home.

Angel is a visionary artist with a theme of peace as her main core of creative expression.  Angel and Gail met after the movie was filmed. www.AngelBurns.com.   The journey, as Gail so put it, was a human one.  There were no boundaries, there were no common restraints of an, “in comparison,” European society.  There was less regard on color or creed and more emphasis on need.  Need, a big word that meant a lot to small countries like, Peru, Argentina, Uganda, Poland and even right here in our own back yard, in a more than cold, but in need heat, the city of Detroit.

Opening Our Eyes discovered cool people, regular folk, like Gina Low and local Peruvian, Pablo.  Gina packed her things, sold all, and moved to Peru.  Gina now lives in a converted boat turned medical center, named, APECA., check this, right off the Amazon.  Her local assistant, Pablo whose military trained medic skills, became highly instrumental in the transition of Gina‘s small house boat into APECA.  A much needed and very first medical center in the area.  APECA seeks to educate the local villagers on how to improve the quality of water which flows through the Amazon. This education is invaluable and can help to increase the longevity of natural plants and trees there.  Pablo speaks candidly in his native tongue, during our interview about his life,  and how his meeting Gina helped to carve a way for him to serve and help to promote change.

We Americans listen to hip-hop,  Lady Gaga and Beyonce, in places like Sydney, Austraila, organizations set up for change, hear resistance and in Uganda the people who live there in Cancer stricken shantys, hear the cries of a sick child, the grumbling of an empty stomach, the low bellowing of a soul in sorrow as a dear friend or even worse, family member passes.  Director, Gail Mooney, and Erin Kelly, open hearts and eyes and have been given the spiritual task of our awakening. Their talking with a college student like, Maggie Doyne, who gave up a college classroom to help create a school for an outdoor village, full of lovely smiles, etched on the faces of the children in Nepal.  Roni Kahn, of Sydney, Austraila, who was inspired to develop a program taking leftover foods thrown away by local food chains, so that local agencies could in turn help to feed over 100 hungry lives.

Just one person, giving time, one person giving a hug, one person giving a smile, one person filling a need has so much value. This one person can help in sharing skills of how to help maintain clean water, help towards the purchase of quality medical supplies and in some places, that one can help to cultivate fresh fruit and vegetables; seeded in home grown gardens, by people that live on the land.  During the film, I noticed that all of the people interviewed, spoke about their passion and comittment in helping to create change; as if they were eating delicious food, and that my friend, is an eye opener.  Watch the trailer, see the movie,   Opening Our Eyes, www.openingoureyesmovie.com.   Open YOUR eyes, support independent filmmakers.  We added four rare stones to our bag, Gina, Angel, Gail, and Pablo and although in a bag with other rare stones, they glisten ever so brightly.