My Parental Heart Races For Cars 3

I grew up playing sports. From the time I could walk, I was throwing a ball. I was shooting hoops with my dad and brothers, running bases and foot racing whomever I could. I was an athlete and it has always been part of my identity. I did great in High School and earned a scholarship to play on a local college team, and this accomplishment was something I’ll never forget. I knew what I was good at and I felt confident and strong doing it.

Then college ended. I got married and had kids and my body started to change. I started to get older and the things I could once do perfectly, were done…slower. The ‘kids’ coming onto the rec teams I was playing on were quicker, faster and I just couldn’t keep up. I wasn’t any worse at what I did, it was just all slower.

As my children grew, I started to see that they, too, were all excelling in sports and then it happened.

There was a moment it all started to make sense to me. The tides turn, the torches are handed over and I may have been really awesome at something at one time, better than anyone else…but there’s a change that is inevitable…the next generation.

This moment completely overwhelmed me and the pride I feel now for my children as they grow and learn and excel at whatever they’re doing, far exceeds the pride I ever had for myself. Helping someone reach their potential and watch them grow is so much more enjoyable than doing it myself. And this was never something I saw coming.

My heart warms at the thought of the joy and pride my parents must have felt watching my brothers and I succeed in sports and academics and relationships and whatever it was we fought hard to accomplish, given our natural ability and abilities shaped.

Cars 3 reminds me of this amazing inevitable change. As parents, we will definitely get out of this movie, something the kids can’t quite understand yet.

While Lightning is still the same self-assured, determined and fun-loving race car audiences fell in love with, his confidence is being tested by the new cars on the track.

Enter Cruz Ramirez.

This female character will challenge Lightning and help him in ways he never saw coming.

I thought this movie was very sweet and more story driven than the first two. To me, this Cars film hit closer to home than the others and I adored the message. There’s definitely an awesome feature with the female character overcoming and fighting through, and it was very nice to see. I wondered, though, what did my daughter see…

As we walked out of the movie, I asked my 7 year old girl what her favorite part was, she quickly replied “I liked it that the girl never gaved up.”

She got it.

With its unbelievable animating (as in sometimes I couldn’t tell if the background was real or not) Cars 3 is now in theaters!

and don’t forget the most amazing part of seeing any Disney/Pixar film…the short!! Lou is brilliant and made my child look at me with tears in her eyes. So so good. Bravo!