Lessons from Kung Fu Panda 2

My son had been longing to watch Kung Fu Panda 2 ever since his Papa mentioned to him that they would see it on their regular father-son “dates.” Luckily for us, I was blessed to receive an e-mail invitation to an exclusive screening sponsored by Intel Philippines, as part of their promotions for their Digital Showdown Competition.

To be honest, I was surprised to receive this invitation, as I personally don’t consider my blog followers to be that big in number yet. You could say I was so psyched about it, except that the invitation was for only two people. But Ms. Magel of Strategic Edge, Inc., who was in charge of promoting the screening, was so nice and let us have 3 invites so Tim could watch with us. Yey!

I liked the first Kung Fu Panda but don’t really remember much about it (haha! Blame it on momnesia!). Watching its sequel, however, gave me (and I suppose a lot of other people in the audience too), not just lots of laughter, but a few valuable lessons, which hubby and I also tried to explain to Tim (who, by the way, mostly wanted to buy Kung Fu Panda toys from McDonald’s after the movie).

1. “Anything is possible with inner peace.” – Shifu to Po

Before going to Makati to watch the movie, I had to go home to Cainta from Cubao to pick up Tim. Before leaving the office, I had a rather unpleasant telephone conversation with someone whom I was only trying to help out. Added to the stress of the past few weeks of finishing the book project we’re working on, you could say that after putting the phone down, a lot of inner peace had turned to inner rage.

It’s a good thing we watched Kung Fu Panda 2 then. Thanks for the reminder Master Shifu! Come to think of it, when we are peaceful within, there would be a lot more peaceful and happier communities. (Isn’t that how the song – One More Gift – goes: “Grant me serenity within.. for the confusions around are mere reflections of what’s within.. what’s within me?”)

2. “You gotta let go of all that stuff in the past because it doesn’t matter anymore. The only thing that matters is what you choose to be now.” – Po to Shen

I totally LOVED this line. I was instantly reminded of Bo Sanchez’s book “Your Past Does Not Define Your Future.” Reading that book became one of the defining moments of my life. It doesn’t matter what your past sins, failures or hardships are, what matters is the future you make for yourself.

Being in community ever since my teenage days, I was also taught that I can choose how I deal with the issues and problems in my life. You can’t change the way other people think about you, or control your circumstances, but you CAN take charge of your own life and live passionately every single day. (This is one Kung Fu Panda lesson I hope our kids will learn, and I hope to teach it to them).

3. “I know who I am. I’m your son.” – Po to Mr. Ping

While we were watching, there were a few scenes where Tim said “That makes me feel like crying!” Particularly those where Po was still a baby. We comforted him and assured him that everything would turn out ok.

I love how hubby Anthony hugged (well, “side-hugged” since they were sitting side by side) Tim when Po said this line to Mr. Ping, who is his adoptive father (grabe! Were you as shocked as I was? Haha). This reminded me of the importance of knowing who we really are – we are all, whether you choose to believe it or not – sons and daughters of God. “Who we are” is not so much defined by what we can do (remember Po, who said that if there was no Kung Fu, then he wouldn’t know who he was anymore?). We are who we are. Beautifully, wonderfully created to bless the world with our unique talents and skills. Period.

Since I loved the father-son element of Kung Fu Panda so much, I thought I’d leave you with this inspiring (and in my case, tearjerking!) video about Rick and Dick Hoyt, a beautiful tribute to a father’s love for his son. (Just typing this leaves me with goosebumps!)

P.S. Have you told your father “I love you” today? Or told your husband what a great father he is to your kids? Don’t wait for Father’s Day to do it! Show the great dads in your life how much you appreciate them. Now, excuse me, I’ve got to go kiss the hubby!