Not sure if any other Stackers have been watching the Shogun series, but I for one have been thoroughly enjoying the series. It may be the first US made Japanese history based film (that I've watched) that has used a proper Japanese cast, and has actually put in the effort for everyone, even the non Japanese actors to speak very fluent Japanese. As a Japanese American viewer, I highly recommend it!

But I'm not really here to talk about the show, rather wanted to bring up something that hit me while I watched all of these brutal scenes from the era of the samurai. Shogun the show is fiction, nonetheless, the ruthless and often barbaric history of the samurai age that Shogun depicts actually existed, such times where people slayed each other with swords, killed themselves out of honor or dishonor (harakiri), dealt with foreign invaders, were being assassinated by shinobi, etc. And all of this just made me feel in awe of how I literally am the successful representation and result of all of my ancestors who went through such unthinkable times, survived, and managed to pass on their genes and continue their lineage. It's rather insane to think about really. Every single one of us represents generations and generations and generations of successful survival through infinitely more difficult times than today. Our ancestors went through it all quite literally, from wars, to famine, to diseases, to getting conquered or conquering, moving to unknown terrain, fighting off predators, crossing the ocean in God knows how long trips, every brutal thing that we read in history books and see in shows like Shogun, and much worse, and they all won their battle of survival, because if not I wouldn't be writing out this piece, and you wouldn't be reading it.

Just something to ponder on Halving Day. And something to be immensely empowered over I feel, because against all odds our ancestors survived, and that blood runs in our veins, and those genes are ingrained in our DNA. A reminder that everyone has the potential to accomplish anything, you simply have to tap into and unlock the Samurai within.