My Real Life

I see a lot of movies. I can’t help myself. I just love them.

And, over the years, I’ve instilled that love of movies in my children.

While we are happy to curl up on the couch with a good movie we’ve borrowed from the library or paid a buck for at the Redbox, the truth is, we would all rather be in the theater, price be damned.

I’m a fan of the action, the horror, the drama, the romance, the comedy…heck…I’m a fan of it all. And I thoroughly enjoy them all. I have favorite scenes and characters and moments and I find myself thinking about the films I watch far after the closing credits have rolled and the lights have come up.

Most of the time, I am entertained. I rarely see a movie that I don’t enjoy on some level. Even when everyone around me is shaking their heads and muttering at the two hours they will never recover, I leave with a smile, because I’ve found something redeeming in the film.

Yet, every now and then, there’s more.

It’s the last day of summer, today, as I go back to school on Tuesday.

My big plan was to take a day trip to the beach and give a proper farewell to #summer2018, but when I awoke to the rain hitting the roof, I figured it was best to change the plan.

So, I bought tickets to see Christopher Robin.

I can’t pass up a movie about Winnie-the-Pooh, as I have a lifelong obsession with the little guy.

We honeymooned in Disney, and I came back with more jewelry and articles of clothing bearing his likeness than any adult should ever own.

I taught a class at a summer camp called “The World of Pooh” where we read stories, colored pictures, and sang songs, all from the realm of the Hundred Acre Wood.

And when the monkeys started coming along, the nursery was decorated, from top to bottom, in a classic Pooh theme.

(…and often, they decorated themselves, top to bottom, in a classic poo theme, but that’s another story)

So, when I hear Winnie-the-Pooh, my ears perk up and I give whatever it is my full attention.

And so, on this rainy August afternoon, Monkey Girl, Baby Monkey, Tiny and I headed to the theater to see what this film was all about.

As you might imagine, it was predictable. If you’ve seen the trailer, you realize it’s a story about a man who has forgotten how to play…how to live.

Much like Robin Williams grown up Peter Pan in “Hook,” (another favorite of mine), Ewan McGregor is an adult Christopher Robin. A very busy, distracted, business-oriented, family forgetting adult.

And through a certain set of circumstances, he comes to be reunited with his friends from the Hundred Acre Wood who help him save the day, save his family, and save his soul.

Tears flowed…hard…as Christopher Robin left behind his friends.

Every day…for years…Pooh returned to the door through which Christopher Robin used to crawl to visit the Hundred Acre Wood. And his shoulders would slump as he would realize his friend wasn’t coming, and I heard the sniffles throughout the theater and realized it was hitting all of us hard.

Exactly as the filmmakers knew it would.

Predictable in every way.

And yet…

I saw much of myself in the character of the adult Christopher Robin.

Don’t get me wrong. I’m playful, I’m youthful, and I love my monkeys.

But, I’m human, and at times, I’m very much an adult who is busy and doesn’t have time for the silly.

Who doesn’t make time.

I have lists upon lists of things that need to be done, and the truth is, they are things that actually do need to be done.

And as I complete one thing, I am already thinking about the next thing to be done.

But the result is that I am often distracted in the moments where I would truly rather be present.

One of my favorite lines is at the end of the film.

Winnie-the-Pooh asks Christopher Robin what day it is, to which he replies, “Today.”

Winnie-the-Pooh responds, “Oh good…today is my favorite day.”

I love it.

And in a year where I continually find myself focusing on the future…

(Mourning a daughter who is leaving for college in a year, but is still here right now, is a perfect example)

…I want to embrace that philosophy.

So, this year, I’m adding a mantra to my life.

Number one is, and will always remain Be as Kind as Possible, as Often as Possible

But, mantra number two?

Today is my favorite day.