The influence of every experience in your life is determined by the meaning you assign to it (James Clear)

Wie geht's?

According to James Clear - The events of your past are fixed. The meaning of your past is not. The influence of every experience in your life is determined by the meaning you assign to it.

Recently, I spent six hours in the company of my work colleague, Thomas Te Pou, as we journeyed in the Purdmobile, up and back to Gisborne for our athletics day.

Thomas has a prodigious memory. His capacity to recall events in minute detail is amazing. He knows the names of all the players and minute details about all the games of rugby he's played or watched, it seems.
 
I do not share his recall ability.

However, I was sick this week and off school for two days and had time to think about this (and many other things).

I've mentioned before how when I was a kid my mum would take me and my brother to a movie of our choice on our birthdays (which are 18 days apart so I'm sure we shared the movie at times).

Anyway, I decided to make a list of those movies for my own gratification.

Here they are:

• 1964 (I was seven, Ross was 5, and this is when the tradtion started) Mary Poppins
• 1965 That Darn Cat; Those Magnificent Men In Their Flying Machines
• 1966 El Dorado
• 1967 The Jungle Book
• 1968 (This was a weird year - I can distinctly remember seeing these 5 movies at that time - although, they came out in 1968 but may not have screened until 1969 in NZ or else we saw some, like Shalako, outside of our birthday tradition) Villa Rides; Bandalero; The Scalphunters; Where Eagles Dare; Shalako (dad joined us for this one so it definitely wasn't a birthday special - I suspect Brigitte Bardot was a major drawcard)
• 1969 On Her Majesty's Secret Service
• 1970 Kelly's Heroes 
• 1971 Diamonds Are Forever (at this point - I was now 14, Ross 12, the tradition stopped but I can't remember any discussion about it at the time)

A few things about this seem noteworthy, apart from the obvious love of Disney (3), westerns (5), war movies (2), James Bond (2). 

• This was clearly a bonding exercise (mum and us). Our father was never involved. We would always head into Queen Street from Royal Oak (in mum's mini).
• Obviously mum had no problem with the cartoon violence on offer (Scalphunters! What was she thinking? Ross was only 8 or 9).
• This 'tradition' only lasted 8 years. It was a narrow window from age 7 to about 14. Actually I'm not even sure those last couple were with mum along - there's that awkward stage where you want to be dropped off with your mates (same with most families I guess).
• Yes, I aimed to do the same thing with my children but I wasn't as consistent as mum was.

Love and peace - Wozza