Meet The Londons

Meet the London’s

At the conclusion of another emotional day I caught the end of “Meet the Robinson’s” last night. An often overlooked however excellent Disney movie, I wondered once again why I don’t own the DVD. I know, you are probably shocked that there is ANYTHING Disney that I don’t own, but there are a few!

The story is that of a young orphan genius named Lewis, who is brought forward via time machine to his adulthood so that he can help his future son and family out of a dangerous situation. I am not sure why this movie was not as big of a hit as some of the other animated features. Perhaps its plot is a little confusing for children, but it never fails to make me laugh throughout and then cry in the ending. (I swear I don’t cry in every Disney movie every time, just some of them, so no poking fun, Paul!)

Apparently at some point in Future Lewis’ distinguished career, he invented a robot helper top-hat, which is too intelligent and escapes to wreak havoc. Throughout his journey to remedy this problem, Lewis frequently gets frustrated by mistakes or setbacks, but his son reminds him of Adult Lewis’ own motto “Keep Moving Forward.” It turns out that Lewis’ eclectic and eccentric family is comprised of people he has met throughout his life who were positive additions so he kept them close. The family who lives in his mansion is made up of his parents, crazy uncle, his frog-training wife, kids and many others who needed a place to fit in, but also encourage Lewis in his pursuits.

In our lives we meet thousands of people and call many people friends, but sometimes friends become our family. Whether they are people who we eventually marry so they join our family officially, or they are simply the friend whose shoulder we cry on and whose hand we grasp to keep from crumbling into despair, those people are our family. Those friends in whose eyes I see genuine concern and interest in my happiness are part of a larger family for me, and I pray that I am there for them the way that they need me to be. Not only was I blessed with an amazing biological family full of individuals who love me and tell me so every day, I also have the circle of friends who envelop me with additional support. They ensure that whatever happens in my life, I will never be alone.

Just as Lewis eventually chose people who would support him and provide a home full of positive energy and encouragement, I believe it is best for me to try to do the same. Other people’s negative energy and feelings can bring us down, and they are not people who we should be spending our valuable time with. Even at work we have a choice as to who we spend time with and allow into our lives on a deeper level.

Lewis eventually comes to realize that his young self needs to focus on the good in his life rather than the negative, and “Keep Moving Forward” into the future because he will make his own family and his own happiness.

The movie ends with a song and then a quote from Walt Disney himself.

let it go,
let it roll right off your shoulder
don't you know,
the hardest part is over
let it in,
let your clarity define you
in the end
we will only just remember how it feels

our lives are made
in these small hours
these little wonders,
these twists & turns of fate
time falls away,
but these small hours,
these small hours still remain

let it slide,
let your troubles fall behind you
let it shine
until you feel it all around you
and I don't mind
if it's me you need to turn to
we’ll get by,
it's the heart that really matters in the end

our lives are made
in these small hours
these little wonders,
these twists & turns of fate
time falls away,
but these small hours,
these small hours still remain

all of my regret
will wash away some how
but I can not forget
the way I feel right now

in these small hours
these little wonders
these twists & turns of fate
these twists & turns of fate
time falls away but these small hours
these small hours, still remain,
still remain
these little wonders
these twists & turns of fate
time falls away
but these small hours
these little wonders still remain

“Around here, however, we don't look backwards for very long.

We keep moving forward, opening up new doors and doing new things, because we're curious.....And curiosity keeps leading us down new paths.”

-Walt Disney