Stick smarts

A notice of the resurgence of the musical version of “The Lion King” coming to a theater in Cleveland brought to mind a reflection I wrote back in 1995. I think it still has relevance, perhaps even more so now, with many people having an “It’s all about me” attitude. So here it is:

Wisdom presents itself in strange places. Since a flurry of children has recently entered my life, I found myself going to see the animated movie, “The Lion King.” One scene imprinted itself on my mind as a wonderful model for coping with life’s problems.

At one point in the movie, the main character, the young lion Simba, is being reprimanded by the wise old baboon, Rafiki, for living a life of ease and shirking his duty. Simba starts to rationalize, and Rafiki whacks him on the head with his staff — a stick with two coconuts tied to the top.

Simba questions why Rafiki did that, and Rafiki answers, “It doesn’t matter. That was in the past. The important thing is what you learn from it.”

Rafiki swings his staff again, but this time Simba ducks. Voila! True wisdom.

Boy, I wish I had Rafiki’s staff. It could put an end to all the whiners of the world.

I’d start with my own children. They’re all adults now, but no matter what the birth order of each, I still hear that I have given more attention to another. Whack! The past, however you perceived it, is done. Get beyond it. We are family.

Next, I’d wipe out all of the TV talk shows. The recent violence they have exacerbated has even caused the industry to be shame-faced about them. Thwack! Thwack! Quit griping about your experience. What did you learn from it? Go on with your life.

I could pretty much empty many psychiatrists’ couches, too — not of clients whose need is authentic but of those pampered whiners who relish years of therapy. Smack! It’s in the past. Get to the gestalt. Learn and move forward.

Just think of the potential: “stick smarts” could straighten out grudge-holding spouses, warring countries, racial tensions, etc. Maybe all people need is a good whack on the head — a jolt of reality.

So, from a children’s movie comes a powerful maxim for life: Don’t dwell on the past. You can’t undo it. Just learn from it and grow!
 
As published in Horizons, Nov. 11, 2018.
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