What I Learned From A Family of Cavemen

(I wrote and published this over on Mom's Gone Strong blog originally but decided I wanted to post it here as well! Sorry if you end up seeing it twice!)

 I took my daughter to see the new movie The Croods recently.

 We sat down with our large thing of movie theater popcorn (you got to let loose sometimes, right?!) and settled in to enjoy what we thought would be a decent enough movie and were surprised with a movie that was both funny and heartwarming and will probably go down as one of my all time favorite animated films.

Beyond my love for the caveman diet, somewhere along the way I realized partly why I enjoyed it so much was because of the sheer awesomness of the lessons it shared about life and what it means to truly be living. 

If you haven't seen it yet, I highly suggest you do. The story seems like just another silly kid plot, and at it's core it is. The Croods are a family of cavemen who have learned to survive by following a strict set of rules and squashing any curiosity that comes about. Basically, anything new will get you killed. The most necessary rules they obey are never leave the cave when it is dark out and to never not be afraid.

The teenage daughter, Eep, doesn't accept this and in an act of defiance and curiosity she leaves the cave at night and the lives of the Croods are forever changed.

And so begins the cross country adventure of this first family. Its a rough journey filled with lots of obstacles, dangers and, for the audience, laughs. As the story drew to a close I began to see the hidden morals of the story, which just happened to be lessons I have learned in the past nearly 3 year now since I started my Own journey.

Living vs Surviving

The best line in the movie, at least to me, occurs when Eeep is having a slight teenage hissy fit.

"That wasn't living. That was not dying."

Take a look at your life right now. Are you really living? Or are you just not dying?

• Do you live everyday on auto pilot, jumping from job, to child rearing, to sitting on front of the tv for hours before bed?
• Do your days all blend into one giant ball of mere existence?
• Are you spending your days surviving and forgetting to live in the process?

We have been granted this amazing experience of life and yet so many of us get so caught up in paying the bills, keeping up with the Jones's and sticking with a set routine that we forget to actually live.

Take a few minutes every morning to stop and think about what it would take for you to really live that day. Instead of wasting money of junk food or a TV that will put the neighbor system to shame, save it and go on vacation. Spend a week exploring that far off exotic country or camping at a lake nearby. Go out and play. Learn a new sport, a language or how to play guitar. Learn what it means to you to be alive and do it.

Stop not dying. Start living.

Don't hide in a cave

In The Croods, Eeep meets this mysterious stranger who tells her that the end of the world is coming and they needed to flee to higher ground. Meanwhile, the patriarch of the Croods feels compelled to keep to his safety zone and wants to hide in the dark their cave.

This is something I am very familiar with. As little as 3 years ago I was passively waiting for The End. Instead of taking control of my life, taking chances and following the light I chose to hide in the dark, sticking in my comfort zone and slowly poisoning myself with every bite I took.

Until one day I decided I no longer wanted to just wait around for the End. I took a chance, started changing my life little by little and I've never looked back. I refuse to hide in my cave any more.

Humans, in general, try to stick to what they are comfortable with. Change is hard. Change is scary. But if you spend your life hiding in a cave, you'll never know what you are missing and will never know your true potential. Get out there and try something new.

Want a more exciting job? Search for one.
Want a better social life? Get out there and meet people.
Want to run a marathon? Start a running program.

You can't possibly know what is out there waiting for you until you step outside your comfort zone and go looking for it!

Support is important

Through the whole movie one thing remained the same. The Croods are a family and they stick together.

This is important in real life too. When you decide to go on a life changing journey whether its to lose weight, change your career or whatever it may be for you, the easiest path is the one taken with your family and friends by your side. Having the support of loved ones is the number one predictor of successful change.

Even if your supporters aren't changing with you, just having someone to cheer you on and lend an ear when things aren't going great is more than enough.

If you spend your days surrounded by people who tell you that you can't make the change you want to, that success is too hard to try for and you're only going to end up being disappointed, then guess what? You will end up having a hard time being successful in whatever change you are trying to make.

But if you have people by your side who support you and cheer you on it will be easier to make those changes even on the days that seem hopeless.

Team up with a friend, join a local walking group or an online group like the Mom's Gone Strong Facebook page and find others who will take the journey with you and help see you through.

Changing your life is possible. It takes hard work and dedication but if you want to chase your dreams, you can jump on the sun and fly.

But first, go take your kids to go see The Croods!!