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Joy

German holiday ad depicting two girls separated by invisible barriers hits home

A hauntingly beautiful message for our polarized times.

Photo credit: Deutsche Telekom/YouTube

"Bubbles," a holiday ad by Deutsche Telekom

Most advertisements are purposefully obnoxious or annoying in some way, designed to grab our attention in order to sell us a good or service. But occasionally a commercial comes along to accomplish that same goal but in a more thoughtful way, with artistic beauty and a heartfelt message that taps into our humanity. Are such ads still trying to sell us something? Of course. Does that mean the people behind those ads aren't sincere in the messages they're trying to convey? Not necessarily, which is why people around the world are celebrating a 2-minute holiday spot from a German telecom company.

The ad from Deutsche Telekom, the parent company of T-Mobile, plays more like a short film than a commercial. As a version of "Shchedryk" (the Ukrainian folk song that gave us the melody for "Carol of the Bells) plays, we see two girls around middle school age, one dressed in red with a pointy nose and the other in blue with pointy ears, forming a friendship despite the panes of glass that separate them. The scene alternates between the joy of playing together and the clear message that their elders don't want them interacting with one another. The girls are determined, but they eventually see how limiting the glass walls between them are. The reveal of their gifts to one another at the end is hauntingly beautiful, with a powerful message.

Watch "Bubbles":

- YouTubewww.youtube.com

Breaking down barriers is a classic message but one that feels incredibly timely for our highly polarized present. The ad feels like it makes a subtle allusion to the Berlin wall, but the walls that separate these girls are perfectly transparent. They can see into each other's worlds, but can't get past what's separating them. The way they see the problem but feel powerless to change it feels like a fitting metaphor for today's divisions, as do the bubbles that surround the girls and their communities preventing them from fully communicating with one another.

People found the video surprisingly moving.

"It's the invisible wall that people build between each other because of perceived differences...nationality, religion, sexual orientation and how they perpetuate it by passing it on to their children."

"The innocent and non-judgemental minds and hearts of children - so much that adults could learn from them!"

"Isn't amazing how it takes innocent children to take down the walls put in place by adults."

"It shows that governments and small minded people cannot keep people apart forever. They can keep us apart for awhile but the human spirit does survive in spite of governments and small minded people."

"Heart wrenching, and joy inducing all in one ad."

"A knockout Christmas ad with a profound message for our time... Wunderbar!"

"Blue, red. This ad has me crying. I am struggling here in the USA. Merry Christmas to all around the world!"

The tagline for the ad on the YouTube share reads, "Connections Begin When Barriers Break. ❤️💙" Though the ad comes from Germany, the song lyrics being sung in English and the red and blue colors can easily be seen as pointing to American politics (which arguably impacts much of the world in direct and indirect ways). It's a good reminder that so much of what divides us are invisible barriers we've created and grown to identify with. Seeing those things through the eyes of children helps highlight how absurd it is to wall ourselves off from one another due to differences—an age-old human habit of prejudice that only leads to more misunderstandings and suffering. It might seem scary to shatter the bubbles we've built around ourselves, but when we do, we may find that what's on the other side isn't nearly as scary or awful as we've been led to believe.

May we all find ways to break down barriers and embrace the joy of friendship in this season of goodwill.

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Joy

7th graders are asked what 30-year-olds want for Christmas and their answers are hysterical

Who doesn't love soup?

@7thgradechronicles/TikTok

According to 7th graders, 30-year-olds want soup for Christmas.

Seventh grade teacher Mr. Frakes routinely asks his students to give their observations on various aspects of adulthood to post on his TikTok.—everything from “things parents love to say” to reactions to old school songs to guessing the “worst parts about adulting." The answers are always hilarious…if not a little brutal to us olds.

His Christmas edition is no different. Mr. Frakes asked his students “what do you buy someone in their 30s for the holidays?” And the adults who saw the video can’t help but commend the accuracy.

The list is as follows, verbatim.

“Measuring cups…bwahaha.”“

"Signs that say ‘Bless The Home.’”

“A Dyson vacuum.”

“A bottle of wine and hip implants.”

“Panera bread gift card. People in their 30s love soup!”

“Bingo cards.”

“You give them Bath & Body Works stuff. That’s what my mom wants!”

“Expensive meats.”

“Hard Candies.”

“Candy Crush Premium.”

“You get them old people candles that smell like ‘home’ or ‘back then.’”

“T.J. Maxx gift card.”

“The wrinkle creams.”

“Heated blanket cause their muscles be hurtin.”

“A coffee mug that says ‘don’t talk to me til I’ve had my coffee’ because they’re all coffee obsessed millennials.”

“A lawyer for the divorce attorney. (fight for the kids).”

@7thgradechronicles Its me. I’m 30s. 😂🫣😬#teachersoftiktok #teacher #teacherlife #teachertok #middleschool #middleschoolteacher #middleschoolteacher #middleschoollife #dyson #panerabread #tjmaxx ♬ Holly Jolly Christmas - Michael Bublé

Obviously, adults who saw this joked about feeling personally attacked. But also seen.

Case and point: one person wrote, “Okay the ‘they’re all coffee obsessed millennials’ was personal” as another admitted, “I watched this while drinking coffee out of my ‘dont’ talk to me til I’ve had my coffee’ mug.”

Meanwhile, another added, “ But are they wrong? Because I honestly love soup and candles. I’m 36.”

Echoing that sentiment, someone commented, “not me thinking all those gifts sound amazing.”

And of course, everyone was eyeing that Dyson vacuum.

Growing older might mean muscles that “be hurtin’” and some judgement from the younger generation, but it clearly also comes with a deep felt appreciation for the simple, practical things in life, as indicated by this list. Nothing wrong with that.

(After all, the young ones might balk now, but it won’t be long til they become coffee obsessed as well.)

May we all get a bit of holiday joy this year, in whatever form we can.


This article originally appeared on 12.21.23

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Education & Information

An Irish school ditched homework for a month, assigning 'acts of kindness' instead

"Our message to the children is very simple: they can be the reason somebody smiles today and they can definitely help make this world a better place for others and for themselves."

henry…/Flickr

Despite controversial-but-compelling evidence that homework takes time away from families with little to no appreciable benefit for students, kids continue to slog through hours of school work outside the time they spend in the classroom. And despite evidence that small acts of kindness can infect a community like a positive virus, far too many kids are on either the giving or receiving end of unkind bullying on a regular basis.

Perhaps that's why an elementary school in Ireland has decided to do something radical—ditch all homework for the month of December and assign kids "acts of kindness" instead.


In the weeks leading up to the holidays, kids at Gaelscoil Mhíchíl Uí Choileáin, Clonakilty have been given a kindness task for each weekday. Mondays they are asked to reach out to and communicate with an elderly person. Tuesdays they make a family member's life easier by taking over a chore or helping out without being asked. Wednesdays are for random acts of kindness of any kind, and Thursdays are for doing something kind for themselves to take care of their own mental and emotional well-being.

Students are asked to keep track of their kind deeds in a Kindness Diary. The school has also created a Kindness Bucket, where students can write down and deposit positive observations and affirmations to boost the self-esteem of their schoolmates. On Friday mornings, a random selection of the notes are read aloud for everyone to hear.

In addition, each class will cooperate in a collective act of kindness for the community based on the students' own brainstorming as a team. How lovely.

According to a Facebook post from the school, the students have been doing similar programs in December for three years running. Last year, the focus was on Gratitude, which resulted in "overwhelming success and positivity."

Vice Principal Íde Ní Mhuirí was quotes in the post:

"We are encouraging our pupils to think of the real spirit of Christmas, the spirit of kindness and giving.
With such an emphasis on the materialistic and commercial aspect of Christmas, we often tend to overlook what it's really all about…. Good will!

Unfortunately not everyone is in a position to be able to enjoy Christmas, some are lonely, some are sad, some might yearn for what they do not have and some might simply not enjoy the festivities. But there is nobody in this world who wouldn't benefit from an act of kindness, and the joy of kindness is that it costs nothing.


What if schools everywhere did something like this, and not just during the holidays? What if we focused just as much on good character and citizenship as we do on test prep? What if each school took it upon themselves to say, "Being kind is more important than being smart," not just for a month, but always?

The most pressing issues our world faces are not so much due to a lack of intelligence or knowledge, but rather a lack of shared values that compel us to care about one another. Without a foundation of basic human decency and kindness, knowledge and skill-building will only lead to more problems, while focusing more energy on kindness can only help build a better world for all of us.

As the school noted on Facebook:

In this world, consumed by social media, where our young people are constantly experiencing pressure, there is no better way to show them the way forward in the world than by practicing kindness. We all know that helping others makes us feel good about ourselves…. What's not to love about that?!? That feel good factor we experience form helping others cannot be quantified. Our message to the children is very simple: they can be the reason somebody smiles today and they can definitely help make this world a better place for others and for themselves.

How wonderful. Less homework and more kindness all around, please and thank you.


This article originally appeared on 12.9.19

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Culture

The German Christmas commercial that brought people to tears around the world

Only one word is spoken—"Papa?"and yet it still says so much.

DocMorris/YouTube

Whether it's the middle of a chilly December or a mid-July heavwave, pretty much any family-oriented Christmas commercial is bound to evoke some emotion. But in 2020, a German ad company succeeded in taking it to another level.

People are calling it the "world's best Christmas ad" and it went incredibly viral with more than 13 million views on YouTube alone—a bit of a surprise for a company few people outside of Northern Europe have ever heard of. But when you start with a mystery and lead viewers to a sweet conclusion that would make even the Grinchiest of hearts grow a few sizes, it's hard not to gain a wide audience.


According to TODAY, the German ad agency Jung von Matt created the 2-minute spot for Dutch pharma company DocMorris. The storyline itself doesn't really have anything to do with pharmaceuticals, but that's the beauty of it.

The ad opens with a scene of an elderly gentlemen looking at photos on his wall, then noticing someone hauling a Christmas tree. He appears to have an epiphany, then goes to pull a kettle bell out of his dusty garage. He can barely lift the kettle bell at first, but as the season changes from fall to winter, we see him get up each morning and engage in a newfound fitness routine. He seems fiercely determined as he lifts the heavy weight a bit higher each time before dropping it. He keeps putting a framed picture in front of him when he does his routine, giving viewers a clue that he's doing all of this for someone, though we don't know who.

Neighbors notice him grunting through his lifts and seem a bit concerned. Someone calls his daughter, who shows up, says the only word spoken throughout the commercial—"Papa?"— then turns around and leaves after seeing what he was doing.

Finally, we see the old man all dressed up and arriving at the same daughter's house for Christmas...and get an answer to the question of what he's been working up to.

DocMorris Weihnachtsfilm #Herzensangelegenheitwww.youtube.com


Aw dang, right? All of that to build a Christmas memory with his granddaughter—one she'll probably remember long after he's gone.

If you're wondering what the words say at the end, they translate to "So that you can take care of what really matters in life" and "Discover your health." Those phrases may have seemed cliche a year ago, but with the whole world reeling from a global pandemic—one that is particularly lethal to our elders—they are a good reminder that health enables us to fully engage in life. And now that our health is collectively intertwined, it's also a good reminder of who and what we are protecting by practicing public health measures and working toward ending the pandemic.

Ads like this that resonate around the globe are the best, as they clearly touch on universal emotions and experiences. Even if you don't celebrate Christmas, the significance of creating a meaningful moment between multiple generations in a family is something we all can appreciate. And since millions of families will be missing out on such moments this year—with the hope that missing out on them now will ensure more of them in the future—seeing this story play out is just incredibly moving.

Danke schön, Jung von Matt.


This article originally appeared on 12.23.20

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