Kung Fu Panda Wisdom

Our family loves Kung Fu Panda. We probably watch the DVD once a week. Every time you watch it, another little nugget of wisdom is revealed. These are the seven pearls I took away from the movie:

Be Yourself : Po’s dad tells him of a “stupid dream” he once had to make tofu. “We’re noodle folk!” Don’t try to be who your mom, dad, friends, or anyone else think you should be. You will never be happy!

Don’t Get Cocky : Shifu believed his protégé, Tigress was the Dragon Warrior. And Tigress thought she had it in the bag. Then out of nowhere, this big fat panda drops in. If you get too confident that everything will surely continue as YOU planned, some whacky, unforeseen thing might really put your world in a tailspin.

Today is a Gift : Po is so wound up over what to do, who he was, where he is going… Oogway, in all his old turtle wisdom reminds him that you can’t change the past and worrying about the future is fruitless. Today is a gift… that is why it’s called the Present. Duh!

Don’t Judge a Book by It’s Cover : An oldie, but a goodie, and one that we can’t be reminded of enough. Po the Panda is clumsy, fluffy, and a bit of slob. But under all that, he has heart. He loves Kung Fu with the innocence of a kid. He has a passion for it in his heart. That’s what made him the Dragon Warrior. The others were measuring strength on the outside. His strength came from his heart.

Believe : Po, against all the tricks and trials, stayed because he wanted to believe that he could be the one to read The Scroll. Even when it seemed impossible, he worked with that belief in his heart. And guess what? He did a bang up job.

There is no charge for awesomeness. Enough said.

There is no secret : but that's the secret. You have to see the movie to get it.

One big underlying lesson was the way the crisis came about. It was set off by events made to secure the safety of the village. The wise turtle says “One often meets his destiny on the road he takes to avoid it.” There’s a lot to that as you watch the movie. I don’t want to give any of it away… you have to see it yourself. But it’s funny how that hit me. How many times do people try to control their environment and circumstances only to come face to face with their fears? You have to face them some day. And only when you stop avoiding your destiny will you be able to really live. The end is a bit of a surprise, but another lesson I don’t want to give away here… you’ll just have to grab some popcorn and watch it yourself.

Enjoy!