"Only those who don't fit can fully think." -- Matthew Fuller and Eyal Weizman
Bend It Like Beckham (2002 Movie)
Follow your heart. Find your people. Bend the rules. Don't take no for an answer.
These adages may sound like clichés, nevertheless they hold merit. Give this 2002 sports-comedy a watch with your family or grown children this week. It pushes past rules of gender, ethnicity, religion and immediate family. It also offers parents a nuanced teaching into letting go of protecting children (and future generations) as they navigate new scenarios in their own innovative ways, and draw arcs of life anew.
"A kaleidoscope of color and culture clash humorously as an Indian family in London tries to raise their soccer-playing daughter in a traditional way. Unlike her family, Jess' dream is to play soccer professionally like her hero David Beckham. Wholeheartedly against Jess' unorthodox ambition, her parents eventually reveal that their reservations have more to do with protecting her than with holding her back." Watch the movie to see how Jess walks through tradition, her beloved sport, and her family's concerns.
This playful movie presents compounded questions that each household and family walks through differently. There is no one homogenous route. In that light, this verse from Guru Granth Sahib, the primary religious text of Sikhism, underscores a universal truth:
The flamingoes fly hundreds of miles, leaving their young ones behind. Who feeds them, and who teaches them to feed themselves? Have you ever thought of this in your mind?
We hope you will also savor Kermit's the Frog's 2025 commencement speech at the University of Maryland, where with humour and depth, he shared about accepting people for their uniquenesses, while also touching on leaping with love and community. Wisdom has diverse origins.
These adages may sound like clichés, nevertheless they hold merit. Give this 2002 sports-comedy a watch with your family or grown children this week. It pushes past rules of gender, ethnicity, religion and immediate family. It also offers parents a nuanced teaching into letting go of protecting children (and future generations) as they navigate new scenarios in their own innovative ways, and draw arcs of life anew.
"A kaleidoscope of color and culture clash humorously as an Indian family in London tries to raise their soccer-playing daughter in a traditional way. Unlike her family, Jess' dream is to play soccer professionally like her hero David Beckham. Wholeheartedly against Jess' unorthodox ambition, her parents eventually reveal that their reservations have more to do with protecting her than with holding her back." Watch the movie to see how Jess walks through tradition, her beloved sport, and her family's concerns.
This playful movie presents compounded questions that each household and family walks through differently. There is no one homogenous route. In that light, this verse from Guru Granth Sahib, the primary religious text of Sikhism, underscores a universal truth:
The flamingoes fly hundreds of miles, leaving their young ones behind. Who feeds them, and who teaches them to feed themselves? Have you ever thought of this in your mind?
We hope you will also savor Kermit's the Frog's 2025 commencement speech at the University of Maryland, where with humour and depth, he shared about accepting people for their uniquenesses, while also touching on leaping with love and community. Wisdom has diverse origins.
Reading Corner
Name: My Shadow is Purple
Author and Illustrator: Scott Stuart
Ages: 6+
"My Shadow is Purple is a heart-warming book about being true to yourself that challenges the concept that there are only two genders. The story explores representations of gender in a vibrant spectrum of colour, shining a light on diversity, respecting others and teaching children that it is ok to be yourself." -- Life Without Barriers, Australia.
Author and Illustrator: Scott Stuart
Ages: 6+
"My Shadow is Purple is a heart-warming book about being true to yourself that challenges the concept that there are only two genders. The story explores representations of gender in a vibrant spectrum of colour, shining a light on diversity, respecting others and teaching children that it is ok to be yourself." -- Life Without Barriers, Australia.
Recommended by Kindful Kids Editors
Be the Change
This week reflect as parents, teachers and elders on how have you stayed in touch with your roots while finding resonance in changing environments that showed up in your path or those that you actively pursued as an individual? We encourage you to even think back in time -- for example when you were growing up or going through teenage years. What new values did you shape, negotiate and/or invite in the process? We invite you to write down your experiences and share these stories when a young person in similar situation crosses your path, at home or elsewhere.
