Childhood Revisited

The year was 1999, and I tell you God's honest truth. It was four months removed from the birth of my little brother Evan. My Dad had promised me that he would take me to the movie theatre to see Tarzan once my mom "popped that baby out". He kept that promise. The actual experience of seeing the movie in the theatre is a bit vague to me. I do remember owning a copy of Tarzan on VHS, a copy of a Disney Picture book from the movie, and anything that I could get my hands on that had to do with Tarzan, I got a hold of it. The most prized possession out of the Tarzan Collection that I had as a child was the soundtrack of the movie.

I have a lot of fond memories of family and friends jamming out to that soundtrack! It is that effing amazing of a soundtrack!

We have Phil Collins to thank for the greatness of that soundtrack. The only way that I can describe the experience of watching the film and listening to the music, is the fulfillment of musical pleasure. Entering the human oratory ears, being processed by the brain and traveling into the emotional and sentimental heart. It causes a feeling of great satisfaction and gratitude. Especially with the combination of revisiting and reliving a huge part of my childhood. There are moments of the movie where I get chills. Hearing Phil Collins voice musically accompany the magnificent cartoon image of Tarzan surf and swing on vines through the jungle. The iconic "jungle yell" that Tarzan has. I know I'm not the only one that has publicly made that sound at some point in life. Whether it was on a roller coaster at Cedar Point, or at a Water Park in the hottest day of the summer. So you can tell that it left a lasting impression on me.

A lot of time has passed since that first experience of Tarzan. Being an adult, I now have a better understanding of the content behind the movie.

Everyone knows the story. A human boy raised into an "Ape-Man" by gorillas in the middle of the Atlantic Coast of the African Jungle, being given the name Tarzan by his ape mother. Growing up, with the obvious differences from the gorillas made it difficult for young Tarzan to fit in. Despite this, it was his differences that motivated him to grow and adapt as he grew into adulthood, or shall we say "Ape-Hood". However, it isn't until other human beings show up that Tarzan discovers what and who he really is, falling in love with a woman while protecting his Ape-Family from danger. This is as basic as it gets, but what I was able to take away from the movie was something worth sharing.

In the beginning of the film, Tarzan is rejected and secluded from the "family" of Apes. Why? The obvious differences on the outside. I think that is a theme that Disney included to make a statement. There is a scene in the film where Kala (Tarzan's ape mother voiced by Glenn Close) teaches Tarzan that the one thing that he has in common with the Gorillas is that he has a heart just as they do. That speaks to a deep and philosophic concept without a doubt. I think Disney and Pixar don't pull at the heartstrings the way that they used to. But then again, I am not the same as I used to be. I have grown up a lot since then.

What the movie is subliminally teaching its audience, is that you cannot be afraid and feel threatened by what is different from you. The we ought to understand, that it is human nature to fear the unusual. To be afraid of people that are different and to be afraid of new experiences. We fear what we don't understand. However, do not confuse fear with weakness. It is normal to be afraid and to have fear of something in this life. What is to be considered is without fear there cannot be courage. Courage to learn more about the differences surrounding us. Learn to overcome our fears and accept people for their differences. To treat one another with love and kindness. To come together as a group of people and put our concerns of helping someone else, over the concerns of helping ourselves.

Furthermore, do not be afraid to be yourself. There is only one you, and as Snoop Dogg is famous for saying "Who can be you but you?". When Tarzan tries to leave the Jungle and join the rest of human kind in civilization, he puts his Gorilla family in danger. This causes him to return to the jungle, and assume the role of leader of his family. Tarzan remains true to who he is, and who he was meant to be. Along the way, he finds Jane (his female human soul mate) and the two live in the jungle together with the gorillas. I guess it is another example of the benefits of staying true to yourself, that everything falls into place. I'm not so sure about that, but according to Disney, this is true.

As I journeyed from boy to man, this is the impression that Tarzan left on me. Now more than ever.