I did already admit it, as much as I dream wishfully about a family that treks and camps together, or that sings along to a guitar or spends Sundays gardening………. we are a tv-watching family. ‘If you can’t beat them, then join them,’ was a philosophy that served me well, and in that same spirit, I also pulled out a few tricks to keep everyone happy and side-step the ‘what to watch’ fights.
But I must say the unintentional also happened – I did learn from some of the movies!
Don’t do it alone – Parenting solo is a one-way street to mentally unbalancing two individuals – yourself and your kid. I don’t mean that people can’t be single parents, just that it takes a village. Way back in 1998 Julia Roberts in Stepmom showed how two very different styles of parenting (hers as a step-mom and the children’s mom) had a place. In the comedy movie ‘Daddy’s Home’, a dad and a step-dad contrast what it means to be a father, and in the 2022 production of Cheaper by the Dozen (a movie that’s been re-made since 1950) the modern twist is when a white stepdad tactfully negotiates sensitive territory on race when his step-kids black father feels a white person cannot prepare black children for the world. My absolute favourite is the twist with Onward – a movie about two brothers that reveals how a parent figure may not, in fact, be a parent.
Embrace the crazy – Yes, Yes Day has now become part of our family fun. This movie actually hits upon a formula that gives children control, and parents permission to let loose for one day – a day when parents can’t say no (unless it involves dangerous activity or too much money!). We have had a few of these, and are happy to report that there was no crazy wild activity involved, but a lot of fun for everyone. Embracing the crazy also means letting preconceived notions go, and letting parenting take you on a journey. Ask Matt Damon, who bought a zoo, or Little Miss Sunshine’s family who road trip with her to support her entering a beauty pageant. Merida’s mother in Brave had no choice but to go with the flow when she turns into a bear!
Let there be pets – While I don’t really advise that you make a decision on a pet because of a movie (because Beethoven, the Saint Bernard is much worse in person than in the movie!) but it is true that animals and children can have a special bond. Free Willy did more than gain his freedom into the wide ocean, he healed a hurting and rebellious kid and brought a family together by their acts of faith in each other. Winn-Dixie helped a lonely yet friendly girl find unlikely friends in a quaint town, and Dunstan checked into all our hearts when he showed the hotel manager how to choose his children over his job.
Leave them alone when in China – If you ever get a job in China, just let your child do whatever he wants with any karate master from down the road – this is how they will become the karate kid. Or leave them home alone more!
Be The Rock, not Will Smith – Strangely, even though Will Smith was King Richard, the epic parent who raised Venus and Serena Williams, I want to be The Rock in Game Plan, Vin Diesel in Tooth Fairy, or The Big Show, in well, The Big Show. This is because I think the most important lesson for parents is to lighten up on themselves. Maybe if it was the apocalypse, then be like Will Smith in After Earth. But even then, I would rather go out in a fit of laughter.
I know it’s probably too late to say this, but I do also read books about parenting, and talk to other parents. Honestly.
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Nandini is co-founder of BlueInk Content, pursuing the ideal and inspiring, following her conviction that original thought and powerful stories can move the world. She writes to learn about herself and the world - about writing and communications, family, food and fun, nostalgia, and people who inspire her.
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