Inside Out was supposed to be about how a little girl deals with a big family move. The movie is thought provoking in many ways.
All parents wish their kids will grow up happy. We all like to be happy and be around happy people. Optimistic people make popular leaders and are perceived to be more successuful. We teach our kids to think positive and to look on the bright side. At some point this wish becomes an expectation, or at least as perceived by kids.
We have already heard that kids are more likely to post positive updates on social media and hide setbacks. When all we see is other people's achievements and none of their challenges, it is difficult to normalize our own trials that others do not seem to face. This leads to feelings of inadequacy and may lead to other self esteem issues.
Some people are naturally more optimistic than others. Our desire to project optimism may lead us to hide our other emotions, such as sadness, fear, anger. Our inability to admit these less positive feelings into our consciousness may lead to stress and bad decisions.
There are circumstances in life where no matter how hard we try, we cannot see a bright side. That is okay. Even happy memories sometimes have regretful aspects. Being sad or fearful temporarily does not define us. Hopefully we can look back and see that these circumstances do as much to define us as the happy occasions do. The important thing is to let the emotions out. Once we are done being disgusted, sad or angry, we can move on, and the joyous emotion will have a chance to come to the foreground again.
Our lives are not perfect. If happy is the only emotion, we might cease to feel it at some point. In fact, if we bury any one of our emotions too deep, we risk becoming adept at not feeling anything. Some may argue that being logical like Spock is the ultimate goal for a cerebral human being. But a being that does not experience emotions is synonymous with a sociopath. We need ALL our emotions to live a full life.
Ultimately, the core values is what we are made off. They may temporarily disappear but will come back if we have nurtured those values: family/love, fun/humor, honesty, friendship, passion. The content and context of our memories will change, but will not be destroyed.
One unrelated thought, the sacrifice of the imaginary friend brought tears to my eyes. Yes, this is not a new theme, friends making sacrifices to help friends. But doing so knowing that the not only will the act remain unknown, but your friend will also forget you - that is a true friend.
Finally, in the credits, it was mentioned that the film was dedicated to the kids, and the parent's wish that they won't grow up. This seems to be a humorous way of saying we as parents wish we can always be there for them, have the power to help them, and be allowed to help them, when they have to deal with challenges or are just sad. Since that is impossible, I wish my kid will grow up with the strength to overcome. May joy never be extinguished.
