A truly poignant documentary is one of life’s greatest pleasures. That’s because, at the end of the viewing experience, one comes away from the film with new wisdom, thoughtfulness and images of true-to-life events. Like reading a great article by a talented journalist, or listening to a brilliant modern philosopher speak, a great non-fictional film gives us a new outlook on life and forces us to look at our own existence from a different point of view.

When I attended the July 9th screening of the award-winning film “Daughters of Wisdom” directed by Bari Pearlman, at the Rubin Museum of Art in NYC, I was pleasantly surprised to find a whole new world of color, hope and friendship among the nuns of the Kala Rongo Monastery in Nangchen, Tibet. Their irresistible optimism in the face of hardships made any of my own small and mundane issues seem even more inconsequential. The women kept referring to themselves as “lucky” and “blessed” to be nuns, despite praying schedules of up to eight hours a day confined in a small wooden box and endless manual labor to build and maintain the Monastery grounds.

But the more I thought about it, the more I realized that the nuns of Kala Rongo are the ultimate “Happily Unmarried Ever After” women! Instead of questioning everything, they simply allow life to play out, they live joyfully and fully in their small community, while sharing everything with each other and with the world around them. Gone are the qualms of today’s women about remaining childless, our fear of death and getting old, while ever-present is the beauty of life on this earth – and beyond – for these women. Their laughter is infectious, their teamwork honestly unselfish. Not to mention that these nuns are so visually stunning and elegant in their red and burgundy robes, short cropped hair and naturally pink cheeks!

The film will be shown every Wednesday through the end of August, at 7.00 p.m. at the Rubin Museum of Art. Call 212 620 5000 X344 for tickets. Most of the screenings will be followed by a Q & A with the director, Bari Pearlman. But a warning: I guarantee that viewing this film will give you a whole new fabulous outlook on life!