I can still hear my youngest daughter, Emma, pretending to
be Ariel while splashing around in the swimming pool or the bathtub. I can also
still hear Elizabeth and Olivia pretending to be dalmatian puppies running for their
lives from Cruella DeVille and sitting on the floor with them playing the “Little
Mermaid” and “Beauty and the Beast” board games. And not to be left out, Zach was
quite the “Dark Wing Duck” fan, and to this day I cannot watch “Home Alone”
without hearing him laughing hysterically at the pizza boy.
The reason I bring these memories to your attention is to help you recall the sense of wonder and imagination these movies bring to both your heart and mind. We know mermaids aren’t real, that fish don’t talk, and that Scuttle the sea gull might as well call a fork a dinglehopper, because in real life, he can’t call it anything at all. We also know puppies can’t come up with clever ways to disguise themselves, and that ducks don’t wear capes and perform heroic acts of bravery. Even the movies featuring real people back in the 90s let us use our imaginations in ways that made us laugh, smile, and just feel that childlike sense of wonder. See, you’re smiling now, just thinking about it, aren’t you? 😊
Not so much these days. The real-life versions of the wonder-filled movies are anything but wonder-filled. That’s right—I’m saying it. I’m saying the real-life versions don’t hold a candle to their predecessors.
Now before I tell you why I’m saying this and what I want you to take from it all, I want to also say this: I’m not being a ‘hater’ and I’m not saying these movies are ‘wrong’. I’m just not.
What I am saying, is this: the real-life remakes show a much, much darker, violent, and greedy view of the world. Instead of some cute little mice, a bunch of old hound dogs, or a scatterbrained sea gull putting the mean old lady in her place, or a handful of clumsy well-meaning soldiers helping Mulan save their country, we see…well, it’s not pretty.
Yes, I know real life isn’t always pretty. We're living one of the ugliest times in history right now! But we only have a handful of years to let our children revel in the joys, wonder, and innocence of make believe. And it is during those years that their creativity, imaginations, and curiosity are blooming and growing in ways that will later serve as the foundation for turning hopes and dreams into realities. But if their imaginations aren’t ignited, and if everything is presented to them in terms of the harsh realities of life, they aren’t going to dream. They aren’t going to imagine. They aren’t going to wonder. So, like I said, I’m not ‘hating’ on these movies—I’m just saying that there are plenty of harsh realities of the up-close-and-personal kind in life, so why not let your kids see the world through a softer lens for a while.
The reason I bring these memories to your attention is to help you recall the sense of wonder and imagination these movies bring to both your heart and mind. We know mermaids aren’t real, that fish don’t talk, and that Scuttle the sea gull might as well call a fork a dinglehopper, because in real life, he can’t call it anything at all. We also know puppies can’t come up with clever ways to disguise themselves, and that ducks don’t wear capes and perform heroic acts of bravery. Even the movies featuring real people back in the 90s let us use our imaginations in ways that made us laugh, smile, and just feel that childlike sense of wonder. See, you’re smiling now, just thinking about it, aren’t you? 😊
Not so much these days. The real-life versions of the wonder-filled movies are anything but wonder-filled. That’s right—I’m saying it. I’m saying the real-life versions don’t hold a candle to their predecessors.
Now before I tell you why I’m saying this and what I want you to take from it all, I want to also say this: I’m not being a ‘hater’ and I’m not saying these movies are ‘wrong’. I’m just not.
What I am saying, is this: the real-life remakes show a much, much darker, violent, and greedy view of the world. Instead of some cute little mice, a bunch of old hound dogs, or a scatterbrained sea gull putting the mean old lady in her place, or a handful of clumsy well-meaning soldiers helping Mulan save their country, we see…well, it’s not pretty.
Yes, I know real life isn’t always pretty. We're living one of the ugliest times in history right now! But we only have a handful of years to let our children revel in the joys, wonder, and innocence of make believe. And it is during those years that their creativity, imaginations, and curiosity are blooming and growing in ways that will later serve as the foundation for turning hopes and dreams into realities. But if their imaginations aren’t ignited, and if everything is presented to them in terms of the harsh realities of life, they aren’t going to dream. They aren’t going to imagine. They aren’t going to wonder. So, like I said, I’m not ‘hating’ on these movies—I’m just saying that there are plenty of harsh realities of the up-close-and-personal kind in life, so why not let your kids see the world through a softer lens for a while.
Love,
Momma D
Copyright 2020 Darla Noble. No part of this can be used or copied without permission from the author.
www.dnoblewrites.com
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