Aren't We All a Little Bit Martian?

I just finished watching the movie "Martian Child" with John Cusak. I watched this movie with my wife and kids on a Friday night. That's something I haven't done enough and plan on doing more. Anyway...about the movie.

So, if you haven't seen the movie, I am recommending it now. The little boy that acts in it does a very good job, even though his soft high voice can get annoying at times. John Cusak was outstanding, as always, and the pairing of his real life sister as his sister in the movie was inspired. Amanda Peete rounded out the ensemble and provided good balance to the cast.

The movie is about a brilliant orphaned boy who has developed a fantasy world to cope with his losses and abandonment issues. He believes, or rather acts, like he is from Mars. It takes a slightly eccentric Science Fiction writer, John Cusak, to adopt him and provide the child with understanding and love he needed to overcome the fantasy world and rejoin we humans in our reality. The idea was that deep down, we all have a little Martian in us...we're all just trying to cope in our own ways.

As I thought about that, I realized that I certainly have a little Martian in me. I do things in my life as a coping mechanism...I act like a Martian sometimes to deal with my own issues. Maybe I'm wrong, but I think everyone does this to some degree. You know what? That is OK!

I think that the Martian in each of us is what makes us unique. The little Martian is what makes life interesting. Can you imagine if everyone acted the same...how boring. It's the little things, the goofy things or the poignant things that we do that make us special and provide texture and color to our lives.

The next thought was that the next time I see my kids acting a little peculiar, or marching to their own drum, I'm going to recognize their little Martian and smile, because I know that deep down inside, we are all a little bit Martian.