High School Musical and the Downside of Dreaming

I finally went with my daughter to see High School Musical 3 yesterday, and we both enjoyed it. I thought it had been expanded visually in a nice way -- all those huge dance numbers! -- without losing its down-to-earth charm. I noted several instances where a standard teen story would have spun out into deception and heartache, and this story just went on its cheery way. My kinda film, you know?

If the theme of the first movie was, "Don't listen to your friends, do what you feel," and the theme of the second was, "Then again, maybe your friends do know best," this one was, "But your parents certainly don't know what's right for you." And that's okay, we're an easy target for teen films, us parents who want our kids to succeed and get good educations and not make college choices based on missing your girlfriend. Bad parents! Bad!

It's at times like this that I reflect on the surprising advantages of having children with special needs. Because, you know, that dreaming big stuff? That gets lost early. We don't have a plan for our kids burned into our hearts all through school only to have them decide in their senior year that they'd rather sing and dance than play basketball, or go to a school far from home instead of the one we'd always assumed.

Good to realize, sometimes, that parents of kids with special needs aren't the only ones who mourn the death of dreams; we just get a little jump on it. The fact is, no child -- however "typical" or outstanding -- has a future set in stone, never mind how much their parents would like to think it. Hey, parents of teens! Welcome to our boat!

I'm not sure either one of my kids has dreams on the order of those declared in High School Musical, ones that set their bearers on a course for high-profile success. We're all on the same road trip, seeing how things go. Doubt there's a dual sports-theater scholarship at the end of our road, or an early Stanford admission, or Juillard training. But neither of them is likely to drive 1,000 miles in a wrecked-out car on prom night to see a sweetie, so there are all kinds of blessings.

Do you have dreams for your child? Does your child have dreams that differ? Are you wondering how they kept Gabriella's extremely short dress from flying up during the dance scenes? Share your thoughts on future planning and High School Musical in the comments.

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