I’m a huge advocate for Disney animated movies. Apart from the fact that I still love to watch them myself, I’ve allowed my boys to watch them from being babies. In fact for the first year, the only other screen “entertainment” they watched were the Baby Einstein videos (now also part of the Disney stable). It wasn’t until very recently however that I realized how much I could bless Disney for the thought that goes into these movies for little people.
I’ve long seen either a Disney story of a historical/mythical theme unfold on the screen. I’ve also – in my older years – appreciated the message that sometimes is woven into the movies (such as The Fox and Hound). But there’s something else that a parent can get from these movies and that’s reassurance. As a mom, I know that I can put my child in front of one of these videos for their “TV” time, and I can potter around with chores safe in the knowledge that my child will not only be entertained, but more importantly for young children, they won’t really get frightened. There are a few occasional scary scenes, but nothing that lasts and best of all, it always all turns out right in the end.
Jake, my 6 year old has Aspergers. Most of the time, he’s fine with watching things, but there are other times when he gets very anxious about what he’s watching and wants to know “what’s going to happen next” constantly throughout the movie. Sometimes this is to such a degree that I turn the movie off – even though it’s supposed to be age appropriate (see my other recent blog about my views on non-age appropriate movies and children!) – because I can see how distressed he’s becoming. We were watching Lady and the Tramp together recently during one of his high anxiety days, and he was getting stressed out about whether or not Lady would get back home, or if she would die (big issue with Asperger children) out in the cold, etc and suddenly it dawned on me – there was a very simple way to bring his anxiety levels down. I sat him on my knee, made him look me in the eye, and said “This is a Disney movie. Do you know what that means?” “No” he said, shaking his head. “Firstly, that none of the main characters are going to die, and most importantly, Disney movies will always – ALWAYS – have a happy ending. Ok?” “Are you sure?” he asked. I had a quick mental flick through my memory archives and couldn’t think of one instance to disprove what I was saying and so confirmed that I was sure, and he climbed back off my knee and settled down to continue watching the video.
Now when he’s watching one of the Disney movies, even one he’s seen before and he starts getting anxious I just stop what I’m doing and ask him what kind of movie it is – he’ll answer “Disney”, and then I’ll ask “And what’s special about Disney movies?” “Main characters aren’t gonna die.” “And?” I ask. He smiles, “And there’s ALWAYS a happy ending.” Then I see the tension leave his face as he relaxes, forgets his worries, and becomes just another 6 year old watching a movie. Thank you Disney!
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