What if your emotions were really people? What sort of
conversations would they have when it came to a new situation? And what if,
like many clergy families, moving house was a difficult change you had to deal
with? Well, in Inside Out, this is exactly
what 11-year-old Riley has to tackle as her family moves to a new city for her
dad’s work. She leaves so much that is familiar and we get a front row seat to
the way her mind grapples with this.
The characters representing Riley emotions are comical and
honest: Anger is short-tempered and fiery, Happiness is unstoppably optimistic,
and Sadness mopes in true Eeyore fashion. They negotiate for ultimate influence
over Riley’s experiences and memories, and are challenged by moving house and
community to decide who will be in charge of the response Riley has at
different times – or might it be more than one of them at once?
This is an excellent movie for understanding the range of
emotions children, and indirectly parents, can have as they move home: an
excellent resource for those wanting to understand the emotionally challenging
world of the frequently relocating clergy family. As we travel along with Riley on her
difficult journey we discover how she feels about what’s happening, and why it’s
important to listen to these feelings.
Inside Out does great
justice to the complexity and deeply personal loss of leaving what has been
known for so long and setting out on a new path. This movie is a great conversation starter for clergy families, particularly clergy kids, providing the opportunity to chat about how they feel about ministry
life, or having to move for the sake of ministry. As clergy kids and their
families face the challenge of change in their ministry context, this movie
represents a concerted effort to understand the experience
of kids in change, a sentiment reflective to me of true biblical concern for the
least amongst us (1 Corinthians 12:21-25).
I hope you get the opportunity to see this movie. You’ll
laugh, may need a couple of tissues, and will see a great story about change and emotions, and understanding them from the
inside out.
Cheers,
Matt (PK Place Leader)
Note: We loved this movie so much, it’s on our Resource Giveaway short list!
www.australianclergyfamilies.com -- a community of support & encouragement for those in ministry
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