My son likes Star Wars.
No, that's not quite right. The word "like" doesn't quite describe the level of his fervor.
My son is OBSESSED with Star Wars.
Oh, there have been other obsessions in the past. He was obsessed with Buzz Lightyear, he was obsessed with Scooby Doo, and, for what seemed like an endless period of time, he was obsessed with Larry Boy (of Veggie Tales fame).
But the obsession with Star Wars? This one is different.
This one is my fault.
It all started out innocently enough. He came home from school one day, and he was sad. His two best friends at school had been playing together during free time, and he had been feeling left out.
"Why?" I asked. "What happened?" Did he smell? Had he been mean to them? What was going on?
It turned out that the boys had been pretending to be characters from Star Wars, and Max had never seen a Star Wars movie, so he had been unable to participate.
Immediately I sprang into action. My initial impulse was to rush out to the local Target and buy every Star Wars movie, toy, and book that had ever been made. This, I said to myself, is why I work. So that if my boy wants to learn about Star Wars, I can afford to buy him anything and everything that he might ever need.
After I calmed down, I called my husband, Jud, and explained the situation.
"Honey, Max wants to learn about Star Wars."
I could almost hear the choir music in the background. Like any red-blooded male born during the 70's, my husband had grown up with the Star Wars movies. To hear that his son, the fruit of his loins, his own flesh and blood, now had an interest in these movies? This was a dream come true for Jud.
After a brief debate over whether it was best to watch the movies in chronological order (Episodes 1 through 6 -- my choice) or to watch them in the order in which they had been released (Episodes 4 through 6, followed by Episodes 1 through 3 -- Jud's choice), Jud went off to Target to purchase a box set containing Episodes 4 through 6 (he won), plus an extra disc chock full of bonus features. I contributed to our son's education by purchasing a few Star Wars action figures, a couple of comic books (reading is fundamental, after all), and one or two Lego sets containing various Star Wars space ships (a boy can never have too many Legos!)
That weekend, the education began.
We spent a significant amount of time watching the movies, and even more time fielding Max's questions about the different characters. We perused the comic books, we re-enacted scenes from the movie with the action figures, and we built the Lego ships. At some point, we also purchased a pair of light sabers (one for each child), and, as a special treat, the Lego Star Wars game for our Wii system (Best. Game. EVER!)
Come Monday morning, Max's brain was overflowing with Star Wars knowledge. He was ready to play the HECK out of Star Wars with those boys!
We later learned that one of the boys had watched exactly half of one of the movies, and the other boy had never actually seen any of the movies, he had only played a Lego Star Wars game on his home computer.
Perhaps we overshot the goal just a bit.
But it was too late. The obsession had already taken root, and it has just grown from there.
We have now watched all six of the movies, some of them more than once.
(By the way, for anyone who may have been living under a rock since the early 70's and who, therefore, has not yet seen the Star Wars movies, consider this to be your "**Spoiler Alert**")
We have cleared up the confusion that came from watching Darth Vader die in Episode 6, only to suddenly come back to life as a small child in Episode 1 (part of the reason why I wanted to watch them in chronological order, thank you very much.)
We have discussed why different characters wield different color light sabers (Are blue light sabers better than green ones? And do all of the bad guys have red light sabers?)
And, for several days, we pondered the most difficult topic, the one that is central to the movies -- why did Anakin start out so good, then turn so bad, and then how did he become good again?
We have tackled life vs. death, good vs. evil, and what exactly IS a Wookie anyway?
We have seen countless Star Wars pictures come home from school. We have debated the merits of the light saber vs. the blaster.
And we have sat at the breakfast table and listened as my two-year-old daughter, in all of her nightgowned, pigtailed glory, has hummed the "Darth Vader Theme Song" under her breath, followed by a quick demonstration of how he "breeves."
To say that Max has taken an interest in all things Star Wars would be selling his obsession short. In fact, when our friend Diane recently gave birth to a son and I casually mentioned that she had named him "Luke," Max sprang to attention, like a dog hearing the doorbell ring, as he said "Luke?!? As in, Skywalker?!?" (To be honest, I can't be sure that she didn't name her son after the young Jedi, given that she apparently has her own little obsession with the Star Wars movies.)
I am sure that this obsession will eventually come to an end, just as all of the other ones have. Something new will come along, and he will talk less and less about all things Star Wars.
Unfortunately, I can't do anything to speed up this process, since I was the one who encouraged him to learn about the movies so that he would be able to play with his friends. I brought this on myself, and now I just have to ride it out.
Until then....
May the Force be with you.
No, that's not quite right. The word "like" doesn't quite describe the level of his fervor.
My son is OBSESSED with Star Wars.
Oh, there have been other obsessions in the past. He was obsessed with Buzz Lightyear, he was obsessed with Scooby Doo, and, for what seemed like an endless period of time, he was obsessed with Larry Boy (of Veggie Tales fame).
But the obsession with Star Wars? This one is different.
This one is my fault.
It all started out innocently enough. He came home from school one day, and he was sad. His two best friends at school had been playing together during free time, and he had been feeling left out.
"Why?" I asked. "What happened?" Did he smell? Had he been mean to them? What was going on?
It turned out that the boys had been pretending to be characters from Star Wars, and Max had never seen a Star Wars movie, so he had been unable to participate.
Immediately I sprang into action. My initial impulse was to rush out to the local Target and buy every Star Wars movie, toy, and book that had ever been made. This, I said to myself, is why I work. So that if my boy wants to learn about Star Wars, I can afford to buy him anything and everything that he might ever need.
After I calmed down, I called my husband, Jud, and explained the situation.
"Honey, Max wants to learn about Star Wars."
I could almost hear the choir music in the background. Like any red-blooded male born during the 70's, my husband had grown up with the Star Wars movies. To hear that his son, the fruit of his loins, his own flesh and blood, now had an interest in these movies? This was a dream come true for Jud.
After a brief debate over whether it was best to watch the movies in chronological order (Episodes 1 through 6 -- my choice) or to watch them in the order in which they had been released (Episodes 4 through 6, followed by Episodes 1 through 3 -- Jud's choice), Jud went off to Target to purchase a box set containing Episodes 4 through 6 (he won), plus an extra disc chock full of bonus features. I contributed to our son's education by purchasing a few Star Wars action figures, a couple of comic books (reading is fundamental, after all), and one or two Lego sets containing various Star Wars space ships (a boy can never have too many Legos!)
That weekend, the education began.
We spent a significant amount of time watching the movies, and even more time fielding Max's questions about the different characters. We perused the comic books, we re-enacted scenes from the movie with the action figures, and we built the Lego ships. At some point, we also purchased a pair of light sabers (one for each child), and, as a special treat, the Lego Star Wars game for our Wii system (Best. Game. EVER!)
Come Monday morning, Max's brain was overflowing with Star Wars knowledge. He was ready to play the HECK out of Star Wars with those boys!
We later learned that one of the boys had watched exactly half of one of the movies, and the other boy had never actually seen any of the movies, he had only played a Lego Star Wars game on his home computer.
Perhaps we overshot the goal just a bit.
But it was too late. The obsession had already taken root, and it has just grown from there.
We have now watched all six of the movies, some of them more than once.
(By the way, for anyone who may have been living under a rock since the early 70's and who, therefore, has not yet seen the Star Wars movies, consider this to be your "**Spoiler Alert**")
We have cleared up the confusion that came from watching Darth Vader die in Episode 6, only to suddenly come back to life as a small child in Episode 1 (part of the reason why I wanted to watch them in chronological order, thank you very much.)
We have discussed why different characters wield different color light sabers (Are blue light sabers better than green ones? And do all of the bad guys have red light sabers?)
And, for several days, we pondered the most difficult topic, the one that is central to the movies -- why did Anakin start out so good, then turn so bad, and then how did he become good again?
We have tackled life vs. death, good vs. evil, and what exactly IS a Wookie anyway?
We have seen countless Star Wars pictures come home from school. We have debated the merits of the light saber vs. the blaster.
And we have sat at the breakfast table and listened as my two-year-old daughter, in all of her nightgowned, pigtailed glory, has hummed the "Darth Vader Theme Song" under her breath, followed by a quick demonstration of how he "breeves."
To say that Max has taken an interest in all things Star Wars would be selling his obsession short. In fact, when our friend Diane recently gave birth to a son and I casually mentioned that she had named him "Luke," Max sprang to attention, like a dog hearing the doorbell ring, as he said "Luke?!? As in, Skywalker?!?" (To be honest, I can't be sure that she didn't name her son after the young Jedi, given that she apparently has her own little obsession with the Star Wars movies.)
I am sure that this obsession will eventually come to an end, just as all of the other ones have. Something new will come along, and he will talk less and less about all things Star Wars.
Unfortunately, I can't do anything to speed up this process, since I was the one who encouraged him to learn about the movies so that he would be able to play with his friends. I brought this on myself, and now I just have to ride it out.
Until then....
May the Force be with you.
12 comments:
I am glad to see I am not the only Star Wars fan(atic).
I have recently 'infected' my grandkids with Star Wars fever.
It all started when I spotted the Legacy of the Force series in the bookshop. I had always followed Star War in the books and now here were more. This time however, I decided to go back and start at the beginning. I started with the prequel trilogy and, needless to say, spent most of last and the precious year reading - and obsessing.
Now my grandkids call when they have questions which keeps me on my toes. I just ordered the new Encyclopedia - which should help.
I do believe tho, that there is no such thing as too much Star Wars - and there are so many lovely books just arriving, waiting to be read.
So, Mom, job well done. Perhaps this obsession will not wear off.
I saw this linked off starwars.com -- and it's wonderful! You're raising your kids right. :)
I should probably teach him some something other than the Imperial March on piano, huh....how bout the theme song?
Now bummed that I no longer have my Darth Vader head full of action figures to pass on to my nephew...I had two girls and sold it...who knew????
- dB
Hi there, I found this through your FF link. And I just read it aloud to DH. He filled in with lots of comments that sounded like "Yes!" and "Good for him" and "You go kid!".
My mom was the one who introduced me to Star Wars at a young age too.
You may HOPE he'll grow out of it... and some do- but im still obsessed and proud, some eleven years later. I'm sixteen now, and still in love with the whole saga.
And I have to agree with YZF, you are raising them right.
Turns out starwars.com wasnt lying-this post does make me wanna have kids so i can have all the same conversations with them. :]
I am glad that you introduced star wars to you child. Star Wars are the best movies ever!! :)
It's great that you're starting them out young! I became Star Wars obsessed when I was 13 - very impressionable age! I'm now 24, getting married in a few months, and my fiance loves star wars too! I'm very lucky! We have many wonderful Star Wars discussions. I still kick his butt at Star Wars trivial pursuit though! ;)
I'm glad that you chose to introduce your child to Star Wars. I came into the whole Star Wars thing by accident. When I was a child in elementary school there were a few kids who traded those old Star Wars trading cards (CCG). They just handed me some to get off their hands and I wondered what they were. So I asked my father and he directed me to my Uncle Allen, who let me borrow the Empire Strikes Back (Episode 5). And from there, it hooked me. I then went on to see the other movies, collect the actions figures, read the novels, and even get in on playing that card game. And after seeing the prequels come out and seeing them in theaters and all the new things that have come of Star Wars since then, I am still proud to be a Star Wars fan. And now that I'm at the age where i want to have a family, it excites me to be able to pass on my knowledge of the Force to them :) When I read something like what you've written it makes me smile and nod my head and think that this is why I love Star Wars and always will. May The Force Be With You... Always
I found this off of STAR WARS.com. I too found myself smiling and nodding along as I read it. I was lucky enough to see it the night it premiered, mom drove my 2 brothers and I over 40 miles one way to see it.{in sensurround too} curved screen. Once the music started and the words started scrolling away into outer space, I was hooked. And it's grown into an obsession,or more like a love affair, that I'm quite comfortable with. I'm 45 now,and still read every book I can get my hands on sometimes 3 or 4 times each,play the games, "LEGO STAR WARS the video game",awesome! I have to agree with "writermom" that there is no such thing as too much STAR WARS! Only after I'd seen episode IV for the 30th time did I quit counting... I think it's really great that you can share the whole experience with your son. I do envy you.
The first time I ever had a taste of Star Wars was when my next door neighbor (God bless him) gave me his old Star Wars toys when I was 2 or 3. Having speech problems, my early childhood was sort of in a nutshell and I hardly caught on what the saga was (my earliest memories are bits and pieces of what must have been when I first saw Episode 5), even during 2 trips to Disneyland and riding Star Tours. I do remember how much fun I had watching the Ewok Adventures (Caravan of Courage; Battle for Endor).
Over time, after a little therapy, I truly saw Star Wars for the first time when I was 6. My dad rented, and later bought, a video collection of the trilogy in its original version (it was a year before the Special Editions (1997) came out). Han Solo became my lasting hero.
I owe it all to my parents, because their giving and spoiling added new figures (and later LEGOs, yay! (ditto on your remark)) since then. It got all the funner when my kid brother came around. It was so cute when he diddied the Imperial March at the age of 1!!
Now I'm almost 19, and my brother (11) and I keep up every week on the Clone Wars cartoon.
Mark Hamill, the guy who played Luke, had called Star Wars a morality tale. You are raising your kids on good stuff!)
P.S.- If you're still pondering the Anakin-Fall-Redemption debate, try looking at it from a Jeckell-Hyde point of view. That kinda helped me out.
I also have a son named "Max Skywalker", and his obsession is also my fault...But I don't mind. There are so many life lessons that I have taught my son using Star Wars analogies. We have talked about bravery, being good to others, standing up for what you believe in, and never giving up when things get hard. (I have even gotten Max to eat brocoli by telling him that Jedi love brocoli.) I hope my Max never outgrows his love of these movies.
Thank goodness for this - it has helped me realize that my own 6 year old Skywalker is among good company! My husband and I have carefully and mostly shamelessly encouraged (with inner glee and yes, there was a choir singing in my head at one point) the obsession.
The bonuses to the obsession are obvious - good vs. evil, compelling stories and characters, science, bravery, etc etc. Our young Skywalker uses the Force quite often... such as opening the (automatic) door at the grocery store with a small wave of the hand, stopping traffic to let us pass unharmed in the grocery store parking lot, and so on. I weather the occasional odd look and realize the phase will pass too quickly.
There is one downside that I've been bothered about, though, and wonder if anyone else has had this problem - our Skywalker is so distracted at times by all sorts of Jedi thoughts in school that class work is neglected. The teacher has brought this our attention. We are trying different angles to work things out.
In the meantime, we can heartily recommend the amazing Star Wars pop-up book by Matthew Reinhart as well as the Lego game, lego sets, action figures, sabers and blasters.
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