It's funny how sometimes we don't know what we've got until we lose it. This is what happens to George Bailey, the main character in the classic film It's a Wonderful Life (1946), set in the fictional American town of Bedford Falls, New York. Being an altruistic person, George sacrifices all of his personal dreams and ambitions to take care of other people. Throughout the film, although he has a very strong desire to succeed, George repeatedly forgets about himself any time someone else in town needs help.

For example, he gives up his chance to go to college to manage his father's savings and loan association, which helps many townspeople obtain home loans after the local bank rejects them. George also gives his younger brother all of his savings and sends him to college instead of himself. And when George is offered a large salary and a great position in another company (his dream job) he refuses the offer because the poorer people in the town would be disadvantaged as George is the only one willing to give them housing loans. Throughout the movie, George is constantly tested by Maya, which knows his weakness - a desire to be rich and successful in his career. George always recognizes this temptation and refuses to succumb to its allure.

However when George's business meets with misfortune, he begins to question whether he should have ever been born. This prompts Heaven to send down an angel (in the form of an elderly man named Clarence) to show him what the world would have been like without his selfless participation. The angel takes him around Bedford Falls and George soon realizes the great positive impact his presence in the town has made, what a wonderful life he has helped to create for many people.

The film beautifully illustrates how everyone has a valuable role to play in life and how all of our actions, speech and thoughts affect the Whole. For example, when George's wife and children realize that things are going wrong for George, they begin to pray. Heaven hears their prayers and so sends the angel down to help. This scene also reminds us of the influence of collective thought and the great benefit of group meditation, where people with the same ideas and motives sit together to bring about a better atmosphere for the world and themselves.

Overall, the film It's a Wonderful Life also makes us realize what an inconceivable difference Master has made in the world. It is difficult to imagine what humankind's fate would have been if She had not come here to help us. In the movie, the character George Bailey's personal sacrifices benefited an entire town while Supreme Master Ching Hai's endless and infinite sacrifices benefit an entire planet and beyond.