Like many other Saturday nights before, my family had decided to have a family movie night complete with popcorn, sleeping bags on the floor and random bags of candy picked up from the closest convenience store. My 5 year old requested Disney’s Inside Out for our viewing pleasure and I was happy to oblige. After getting snacks, drinks and sleeping bags ready, we were finally ready to start our movie.
It was at that point when I looked around for my iPhone only to realize that I must have left it upstairs. I contemplated running upstairs to get my phone to have something to do during the movie, but opted not to. After all, I already HAD something to do. I was having amazing quality time with my two wild boys who were surprisingly calm and attentive during the movie. Maybe it was because I was also attentive to the movie instead of browsing on Amazon or reading a random blog post. I got to experience Inside Out through their eyes and from a parents’ perspective. (Disclaimer- If you have not seen Inside Out yet, be prepared to have tissues handy). I got to snuggle with my lanky five year old and share popcorn and M&Ms with my two year old while drinking in their little hands holding mine and sharing pillows and movie commentary back and forth. Instead of them asking a question about the movie and me admittedly having no idea what is going on because that little screen was normally more enticing, I was able to live in the moment with my boys. And it was such a wonderful, beautiful feeling.
Once the movie was over, I was so grateful that I left my phone upstairs. It allowed me to embrace our time spent together and pay attention not only to the movie, but to my wonderful boys that I don’t get enough time with as they grow at light years’ speed. I am already looking forward to our next movie night to create more memories of snuggling and sharing sweets. The iPhone won’t be attending the next movie night either.
