Maybe Timothy Green Isn’t So Odd

Sure it’s a far-fetched fantasy but that doesn’t make it pointless. It ignores God and reality but does that make it useless? Real people hurt like this and fantasize about the answers they want. The power of the fantasy is that it creates a way to connect with what people really think and fear – where they really live. The story is an unthreatening way to connect.

If you don’t have time for oddball fantasy movies, it’s possible that you are cutting yourself off from the opportunity to connect powerfully with others who need your insights (so long as your insights aren’t all negative and scathing!) Opportunities sometimes come in strange packages which demand creativity to open but what’s the harm in trying?

Take a Look At The Odd Life of Timothy Green for example:

“The film starts by dealing with the painful reality that many couples face when they are told they are not able to conceive children. In their grief, the couple writes on pieces of paper about what they had dreamed for their child. He’ll be artistic, he’ll score the winning goal in a game, he’ll be kind, and he’ll have all the qualities that they have themselves, etc. They bury these in a box in the garden, and, overnight, a miracle happens. The child they had dreamed of appears in their garden. This leads to interesting and humorous consequences. This movie has a number of lessons. Children can learn from how the story embraces the idea that it’s okay to be different. Having something unique about you is good, and you don’t need to be ashamed to show it. Also, moms and dads are human and are doing the best they can. Sometimes they make mistakes, but are figuring out a lot of things, as they go.

The Odd Life of Timothy Green (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

The deeper theme which is more likely to be appreciated by teens and adults is about how children are a gift that is not to be squandered. We see the various “pitfalls of parenting”, mistakes that parents make in real life. The parents are shown as well-meaning, but making mistakes as they try to figure out what to do. Parenting is shown as a learning process, too! Also, the idea that we have only a certain amount of time with our children until they are grown and how opportunities can be lost, comes across very clearly. The child touches people’s lives, but his opportunity to do so has time limits, as childhood passes quickly.”

Read more reviews of this movie here.

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Consider Some Relevant Issues Raised In This Movie:

 The pain of infertility

Realistic expectations

What parents want from their kids

Why does God allow innocent people to suffer? Answer

What about the issue of suffering? Doesn’t this prove that there is no God and that we are on our own? Answer

Does God feel our pain? Answer

Did God make the world the way it is now? What kind of world would you create? Answer

ANXIETY, FEAR AND WORRY—What does the Bible say? Answer

adoption in the Bible

being different from others

not being afraid to try anything

trying to be good parents

• Are children reflections of their parents? (parenting-matters.com)
• Movie Review: The Odd Life of Timothy Green (persephonemagazine.com)
• 6 Ways to Ruin Your Children (forallwomentoknow.blogspot.com)