Have you seen the animated movie Moana? (Moana 2 came out a few weeks ago.) I highly recommend that foster and kinship caregivers watch it with their children and youth—Disney movies offer so many wonderful lessons and strategies to overcome trauma and challenges. Here are some things to watch for in Moana that your child may connect with and that may help them build their own resilience.
In the film, the goddess of life, Te Fiti, has had her heart stolen, resulting in the death and destruction of the world. The young girl Moana finds Te Fiti’s heart and sets across the ocean to restore it to her. Along the way she encounters Te Kā, a raging lava monster. Moana battles this monster using all her usual (outdated) strategies and experiences a lot of failure as a result. Then she realizes Te Kā is ACTUALLY Te Fiti! Moana begins to use the destructive behaviors that were pushing her away to instead reengage Te Kā into a closer relationship.
The music solidifies the themes of the movie. One of those songs is “How Far I’ll Go.” The lyrics I love the most are “I can lead with pride / I can make us strong / I’ll be satisfied/ If I play along / But the voice inside / Sings a different song / What is wrong with me?”
How powerful is that? How often do we try and play along to make others happy, when all the while our hearts are leading us in another direction? What courage it takes to change your life and realize the voice inside is the main one you should be listening to.
Another wonderful moment in the film is as Moana realizes who Te Kā really is. She sings, “They have stolen the heart from inside you / But this does not define you / This is not who you are / You know who you are.”
Our children and youth would benefit from hearing and learning to trust that the worst thing to happen to them doesn’t have to forever define them. How many of our youth, all over Colorado, need to hear this message? Whatever life or other people have thrown at you, that you’ve suffered through, you are still you. Perhaps a changed you, a different version. We see the world differently after we’ve been hurt. But turning into a monster only makes you more similar to those who hurt you and removes you from yourself. It’s okay to change, and it’s okay if part of you stays the same.
One overarching message of Moana is, truly, that the worst thing to happen to you doesn’t have to define you. Other characters have journeys of their own to discover this. Moana’s father lives in fear due to a tragic past, Maui feels as though he is missing a critical part of himself without his hook, and Te Fiti turns into a literal monster after she is attacked. Moana shows all three of them that the past, and their greatest fears, do not have to dictate how they live their lives. This is a message for all of us.
