One of my all time favorite movies growing up was Ron Howard’s Parenthood (a movie that has become a hot topic once again since the recent premier of the show by the same name being filmed right here in the East Bay). And as funny as I thought it was as a kid the movie took on a whole different meaning once I was not only an adult, but as a parent.
One of the best parts of the movie is when during a Little League game Steve Martin’s son makes the winning catch. Steve Martin’s reaction, as the dad, is hilarious and his entire outlook on life changes based on the winning catch.
Well recently we lived out the scene. We’ve been going through some rough times lately. Nothing worse than anyone else on this day and age, financial struggles intermixed with job troubles can create a pretty dark cloud over life. We were having a particularly stressful weekend two weekends go. And it was the day of our son’s first Cub Scout Pinewood Derby. My husband and son had been working on the car for weeks. But all of us were in such
crappy moods, that none of us wanted to go.
But as anyone involved in scouts knows, the Pinewood Derby is a huge deal. And we hopped into the car and headed over. We hung around and waited for the Tiger Scouts to compete and then for our son’s first heat.
1st place.
We screamed and shouted. Then he raced again. And POW! First place again.
Race after race he place first except for one where he placed second. By the end we were those annoying parents screaming and shouting every time he won. My husband was on the verge of tears. We were Steve Martin in Parenthood.
It’s amazing how much the little moments of parenthood can change you. How the look on your son’s face when he shows you his first place trophy can touch a place in your heart that you never knew was there.
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