Decades after the first movie in the "Rocky" franchise was released, the movie retains an iconic status among sagas of underdogs rising to sporting glory. The unmatched grit and glamor of this legendary character led to the state of Philadelphia celebrating the day of December 3 as “Rocky Day” every year. During one such celebration of Rocky Day in 2023, Sylvester Stallone came across a miniature version of his character Rocky Balboa, who re-enacted his famous “Sunshine and Rainbows” speech. Stallone loved the little boy’s powerful, gut-punching reprise of his speech so much that he posted its footage on his Instagram page. “This kid is a real-life Rocky,” he wrote in the caption.
Actor/filmmaker Sylvester Stallone attends the opening of the 'Rocky Shop' as the City of Philadelphia declares December 3 “Rocky Day”. (Image Source: Photo by Gilbert Carrasquillo/GC Images)
On that day, Stallone was at the opening of the Rocky Shop at Parkway Visitor Center Outpost, as part of the “Rocky Day” celebrations, as per NBC Philadelphia. He was standing with his crew members in front of the famous stairs of the Philadelphia Museum of Art which Rocky Balboa climbed in the movie as part of his training. Just then a 9-year-old boy from Alabama, named Ro Knight, walked towards Stallone and started performing his legendary Rocky speech. Ro was wearing Balboa’s signature tiger jacket.
American actor Sylvester Stallone, as Rocky Balboa, punches American actor Carl Weathers, during a boxing match in a still from the film, 'Rocky.' (Image Source: Photo by Hulton Archive/Getty Images)
“Let me tell you something that you already know,” the little fan told Stallone, standing before the bronze Rocky statue. “The world ain’t all sunshine and rainbows. It’s a very mean and nasty place, and I don’t care how tough you are, it will beat you to your knees and keep you there permanently if you let it.” In the movie, Rocky delivers this gritty dialogue to his son who feels frustrated about navigating life. In the re-enacted version, Stallone was seen joining the speech with Ro at times. “Me, you or nobody is not going to hit as hard as life. But it ain’t how hard you hit; it’s about how hard you can get hit and keep moving forward; how much you can take and keep moving forward. That’s how winning is done.”
Ro told the outlet that he had prepared for this performance in advance. “It was fantastic,” he said. “He was surprised, I guess. It was awesome.” He revealed that he started watching a lot of “Rocky” movies ever since he was a toddler. An aspiring actor and wrestler, Ro rehearsed Balboa’s lines over and over. The boy however is not as unknown as Balboa's character was before he won the heavyweight championship.
In the summer of 2021, Stallone shared an Instagram video of Ro performing the same speech while wearing Balboa’s red, white, and blue trunks, and holding dumbbells in a gym. “This very young fan is amazing!” Stallone wrote of the 6-year-old Ro in the post. “It makes me incredibly proud The ROCKY character has been passed down through several generations. It’s quite humbling. Keep Punching young man!” Now the young Rocky Balboa may even appear in the next “Creed” movie, but it is not yet known which one. “Whatever Rocky wants,” Ro said. “He’s the director.”
Ultrasound of human baby.Image via 
IVF animated process.Image via 
A couple speaks with a fertility professional.Image via 
Love, Mom.Photo from Heidi Johnson 
A teen boy having a hard time. 
Hands hold a digital representation of the brain.Image via 
Mother and daughter work a puzzle.Image via 
Man and woman connect under the sunshine.Image via 
The obituary paints a comic, if bleak, picture. 
A Facebook post about the obituary.
Why do some folks use social media but don't engage?
Psychologist says people who never comment on social media share these 5 positive traits
For over 20 years, social media has developed into a staple in many people’s day-to-day lives. Whether it’s to keep in communication with friends and family, following the thoughts of celebrities, or watching cat videos while sipping your morning coffee, there seem to be two types of social media users: commenters and lurkers.
The term “lurker” sounds equally mysterious and insidious, with some social media users writing them off as non-participants at best or voyeurs at worst. However, mindfulness expert Lachlan Brown believes these non-commenters have some very psychologically positive and healthy traits. Let’s take a look at how each one of these traits could be beneficial and see how fruitful lurking might be even though it can drive content creators crazy.
1. Cautious about vulnerability
Consciously or not, making a post online or commenting on one puts you and your words out there. It’s a statement that everyone can see, even if it’s as simple as clicking “like.” Doing so opens yourself up to judgment, with all the good, bad, and potential misinterpretation that comes with it. Non-commenters would rather not open themselves up to that.
These silent users are connected to a concept of self-protection by simply not engaging. By just scrolling past posts or just reading/watching them without commentary, they’re preventing themselves from any downsides of sharing an opinion such as rejection, misunderstanding, or embarrassment. They also have more control on how much of themselves they’re willing to reveal to the general public, and tend to be more open face-to-face or during one-on-one/one-on-few private chats or DMs. This can be seen as a healthy boundary and prevents unnecessary exposure.
Considering many comment sections, especially involving political topics, are meant to stir negative emotional responses to increase engagement, being extra mindful about where, when, and what you comment might not be a bad idea. They might not even take the engagement bait at all. Or if they see a friend of theirs post something vulnerable, they feel more motivated to engage with them personally one-on-one rather than use social media to publicly check in on them.
2. Analytical and reflective mindset
How many times have you gone onto Reddit, YouTube, or any other site and just skimmed past comments that are just different versions of “yes, and,” “no, but,” or “yes, but”? Or the ever insightful, formerly popular comment “First!” in a thread? These silent browsers lean against adding to such noise unless they have some valid and thoughtful contribution (if they bother to comment period).
These non-posters are likely wired on reflective thinking rather than their initial intuition. Not to say that all those who comment aren’t thoughtful, but many tend to react quickly and comment based on their initial feelings rather than absorbing the information, thinking it over, researching or testing their belief, and then posting it. For "lurkers," it could by their very nature to just do all of that and not post it at all, or share their thoughts and findings privately with a friend. All in all, it’s a preference of substance over speed.
3. High sense of self-awareness
Carried over from the first two listed traits, these silent social media users incorporate their concern over their vulnerability and their reflective mindset into digital self-awareness. They know what triggers responses out of them and what causes them to engage in impulsive behavior. It could be that they have engaged with a troll in the past and felt foolish. Or that they just felt sad after a post or got into an unnecessary argument that impacted them offline. By knowing themselves and seeing what’s being discussed, they choose to weigh their words carefully or just not participate at all. It’s a form of self-preservation through restraint.
4. Prefer to observe rather than perform
Some folks treat social media as information, entertainment, or a mix of both, and commenting can feel like they’re yelling at the TV, clapping alone in a movie theater when the credits roll, or yelling “That’s not true!” to a news anchor that will never hear them. But contrary to that, social media is a place where those yells, claps, and accusations can be seen and get a response. By its design, social media is considered by experts and the media as performative, regardless of whether it is positive or negative. Taking all of the previously mentioned traits into account, one can see why they would prefer to “observe the play” rather than get up on the stage of Facebook or X.
On top of that, these non-commenters could be using social media differently than those who choose to fully engage with it. Using this type of navigation, there may be nothing for them to comment about. Some commenters are even vying for this for their mental health. There are articles about how to better curate your social media feeds and manipulate algorithms to create a better social media experience to avoid unnecessary conflict or mentally tiring debate.
If you go on a blocking spree on all of your accounts and just follow the posters that boost you, it could turn your social media into a nice part of your routine as you mainly engage with others face-to-face or privately. In terms of commenting, if your curated Instagram is just following cute dogs and all you have to offer for a comment is “cute dog,” you might just enjoy the picture and then move on with your day rather than join in the noise. These non-commenters aren’t in the show and they’re fine with it.
5. Less motivated by social validation
The last trait that Brown showcases is that social media users who browse without posting tend to be independent from external validation, at least online. Social media is built to grow through feedback loops such as awarding likes, shares, and reposts of your content along with notifications letting you know that a new person follows you or wants to connect. This can lead many people to connect their activity on social media with their sense of self worth, especially with adolescents who are still figuring out their place in the world and have still-developing brains.
Engaging in social media via likes, shares, comments, and posts rewards our brains by having them release dopamine, which makes us feel good and can easily become addictive. For whatever reason, non-commenters don’t rely on social media as a means to gauge their social capital or self worth. This doesn’t make them better than those who do. While some non-commenters could have healthier ways to boost their self worth or release dopamine into their systems, many get that validation from equally unhealthy sources offline. That said, many non-commenters’ silence could be a display of independence and self confidence.
Whether you frequently comment online or don’t, it’s good to understand why you do or don’t. Analyzing your habits can help you determine whether your online engagement is healthy, or needs to be tweaked. With that information, you can then create a healthy social media experience that works for you.