Lessons from Wall-E

Have you seen Wall-E yet? While we were cruising, my parents came and stayed with our kids. My mom said she felt like the robot in Wall-E--the vacuum who followed Wall-E around because his directive was to clean up dirt.

This was funny to me, not just because the kids do seem to leave a little trail of messes in their wake, but also because I kept thinking of Wall-E while we were away. I felt like we were the overweight, hover-crafting cruisers, whose "directive" for the bulk of the movie was INDULGE. We ate and napped, ate and napped. No dishes, no laundry, no cleaning. As wonderful as it was, I really wouldn't want life to go on like that, because I would become less of a thinking/moving person. And over time, there would be a loss of bone density...just kidding.

But seriously, as for the current controversy about whether Wall-E is liberal propaganda, I want to hear what everyone thinks. One commentator called it a 90 minute lecture, an animated Inconvenient Truth. To me it was SO entertaining I didn't think to take offense. I only chuckled at the irony of paying $42 for my admittedly large family (at matinée pricing) to learn that mindless entertainment and indulgence is dangerous, with DisneyPixar as our teacher... hmmm.

Maybe if it makes us uncomfortable, it's because we are deep-down uneasy about our ultra-lux lifestyle. Maybe we know we are too attached to the pleasure-seeker-within. Or maybe we simply don't want our cartoons to preach to us (unless it's veggietales?). At any rate, I can't believe that DisneyPixar has any agenda other than one: selling stuff. This time around, I happened to like the stuff. How about you all? Offended, entertained, validated? What did you get out of Wall-E?

the final frontier

Settle down, trekies, I'm talking about ALASKA. We just got back.

We took a cruise with Mike's parents, brothers, and their wives up the inside passage, to Juneau, Skagway, and Ketchikan. It's funny, it took me a couple of days to wind down and settle into the trip, after all the stress and exhaustion of getting ready to go. And the anxiety over leaving my kids for so long. I couldn't just enjoy--I had to unwind my nerves first.

It was beautiful and amazing and a special bonding time for everyone. What a rare experience to have the adults together for so long--we got to know each other in a different way. We laughed and played games most nights. We had an amazing private sacrament/testimony meeting that lasted 2 hours. Everyone cried and shared their love for each other and the Savior. Mike's family is full of amazing people.

Travel synopsis: At Juneau Mike and I kayaked in a peaceful inlet with a glacier view. We saw lots of jumping salmon and a half dozen bald eagles. At Skagway Mike went mountain biking alone, while I toured the town and found a cybercafe from which to email the kids and my parents. I bought souvenirs and walked a lot. The weather was better than we expected. We hardly saw any rain. It was gorgeous like the northwest, but surrounded by snowy mountains. We had a day at sea in Glacier Bay, where we saw lots of humpback whales, and we saw ice "calving" from the glacier. It sounded like an explosion each time ice would break away then crash into the water. Then we sailed to Ketchikan, where we went on a zip-line/rock-climbing adventure. That was the highlight for me. All 10 of us adults did it together. Grandpa and Grandma were good sports. Then we all went to a lumberjack show. Every night we had dinner together, and we informally met up at other meals as well. It was the perfect ratio of couple time/alone time/large group time. And fabulous food and weather. Overall, a great trip.

So now I'm home and SO glad to bask in my kids' bubbly presence (except Berk, who is not bubbly AND not here--I can't wait to see him after scout camp). Big thanks to my parents, who helped make this possible!

Camp Alpine Reunion 2008

Sam, walking the tight rope.

Me!

Sam.

Maia and Mike.

Syd, under the waterfall.

Siblings.

Berkeley.

Boy cousins at the archery range.

Girl cousins on the bridge.

Maia just can't wait to get her swimsuit on.

Just a quick post-in-pictures to give a taste of the best reunion ever. I can't go to this place without fantasizing about building a home right in the middle of the meadow and living there. (Operative word: fantasizing.) Happy 70th birthday, mom! Thanks for building the zip-line, Mike. Thanks for teaching the kids soldering and the finer points of electronics, Ken. Thanks for buying all the food and for the geocache and hiking trips, Dad. Thanks for bringing the fun relatives from France, Sheryl, and for planning the fabulous menu. And thanks to all for the wacky talent show. I love my family!