For the next summer movie, where plants take the starring
role, I watched The Karate Kid from
1984. In this movie, the lead character grows and matures while learning
karate. His mentor uses the activities of gardening to help transform his
pupil.
The main character is Daniel, a fifteen year old from a
tough neighborhood in New Jersey. His single mother has an opportunity to
improve their lives, packs up the station wagon, and they drive across country
to California for a fresh start. Daniel is reluctant to leave their home and
his friends, and their new rundown apartment in California doesn't improve his outlook. At
school, Daniel meets potential new friends, and Ali, a knockout cheerleader.
Ali has recently broken up with Johnny, the ringleader of a group of bullies,
who are learning karate from a dishonorable dojo master. After a particularly
humiliating encounter with them, Daniel meets the apartment's maintenance man,
Mr. Miyagi, who is also suffering from loss, and agrees to teach him karate.
They prepare for a local tournament, in which Daniel will fight Johnny in an
exciting last round.
Mr. Miyagi uses everyday tasks to train Daniel in karate. In
the classic "wax on, wax off" scenes, Daniel must wax a whole fleet
of Miyagi's classic cars using his left arm to "wax on" and his right
to "wax off". Mr. Miyagi uses the same principle to get Daniel to
sand, and then paint the decks and fence of his garden. (This is brilliant, and
I really should have remembered this when I was parenting)! Mr. Miyagi also
uses his Bonsai trees as an object lesson for learning about discipline,
beauty, and character. Through Mr. Miyagi's lessons, Daniel learns karate, and,
more importantly, is transformed through the friendship and lessons about life,
relationships, and character. See the trailer: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=n7JhKCQnEqQ
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