Scaredy Cat vs. Copy Cat

We were invited to a birthday party the other day. It was at a movie theatre and they were going to show Monsters vs. Aliens for all the party goers. It was a cute idea but the moment Joey saw the invitation, she started to freak out. (If I haven't mentioned it before, Joey is the biggest scaredy cat.) I tried to help her see how silly the monsters looked and convinced her it would be fun to go. She started to laugh and agreed that it would fun. I don't know why I thought that would be the end of it.

So the day of the party, the girls and I go to the theatre. They are both so excited to be in the theatre and to see their friends. Once it is time to start the movie, they all get their little bags of popcorn and don their 3D glasses. Joey is sitting between her two closest friends and Elysha is sitting next to me. My little Elysha is such a beanpole that she kept slipping through the back of the seat. So she had to sit up straight and not lean back. But as long as she had her bag of popcorn, she was good.

Everyone was watching the movie, having a great time. I thought the scene where the president tries to greet the aliens with the synthesizer was hilarious. But suddenly, I heard loud whimpering. I hoped that if I ignored it, it would go away. Unfortunately, Joey's little friends started to whisper loudly, "Joey's scared." Darn, other people noticed too. So I tried to be a good parent and motioned Joey to me. She was sitting on my lap, whimpering and whispering that she was scared. Elysha appeared to be unfazed by Joey's crying and continued eating her popcorn and watching the movie through her 3D glasses. I wanted to finish the movie so I tried to reason with Joey, but then the aliens started shooting at the humans. Joey freaked out even more and I realized that she was done. So I turned to perfectly content Elysha and whispered that her sister was scared so I needed to take her out. I gave her two options, to either stay and finish the movie, or come out with us. When Elysha saw Joey crying, suddenly, Elysha decided she was freaked out too and started crying as well. "I'm scared! I'm scared!" (If I haven't mentioned it before, Elsyha is the biggest copy cat.)

The Day the Earth Stood Still

Chang and I had a date night tonight. It feels like it has been a long time since we have been able to get out on our own so it was fun.

We (he) wanted to watch Transporter 3, which I hear is gunning for academy awards. But we weren't able to get to the theatre in time. So we watched The Day the Earth Stood Still. It was just okay, though Keanu Reeves was great as a stoic and laconic non-human. I couldn't help but feel, however, that the message of the movie was very timely. The human race is in a crisis state and we arrived here by our own doing. We all bit off more than we can chew and the world's economy is going to pieces. We invented all these modern conveniences and it is destroying our environment. It makes me think about the line repeated in one of my favorite movies Heathers, "What a waste, oh the humanity."

However, a big theme in The Day the Earth Stood Still was that we, the human race, are capable of changing for the better. And I really believe this is true. It is in the moments when we hit rock bottom, when we are faced with the reality and limitations of our humanity, that we can shine. We let go and give it up to God...like when I was told I would miscarry Sam...like when the ER doctors were freaking out as I was lying on the gurney, bleeding out...like when my mom told me she had cancer.

Our children are our biggest ways of declaring our hope for the future and staking our trust in tomorrow. There are many reasons why I love my children, but one of them, is because I see love and joy, so pure and unadulterated in them.

Whoa!...as Keanu would say...all this from watching one of his movies.