Hooked

I'm not sure how old I was when I became enamored with the story of Peter Pan, but I do know that from the moment I first began reading it, I fell in love with every detail of the tale. I'm also not sure how many different renditions of the story I've seen down through the years, but I do know that I have two favorites ... the high school musical presentation of Peter Pan that my son Brad performed in, and the movie adaptation starring Robin Williams as Peter and Dustin Hoffman as Captain Hook. Brad played a pirate in the musical, a singing and dancing pirate, which struck me as so funny at the time ... my Bradley as a singing and dancing pirate was just funny. The film, aptly named Hook, was filled with amazing scenery and great dialogue, and I remember as if it were yesterday taking Matt, Brad and Meghann to see it at the theater.

I have no idea how many times I've seen the movie since that first time I saw it with my kids, but I do know that I will never tire of watching it. While there are many scenes in the movie that touch me each time I see them, there is one in particular that moved me deeply when I first saw it and continues to move me even now. The Lost Boys don't believe the grown-up Peter Banning, an aging attorney who drinks too much, works too much and spends far too little time with his wife and children, could possibly be Peter Pan. Following a high-speed chase with the Lost Boys trying to catch Peter, there is a poignant scene in which one of the youngest Lost Boys, Pockets, bravely approaches Peter. Pockets walks around Peter and tugs on his arm to get him to kneel in front of him. The little boy removes Peter's glasses and touches and squeezes Peter's face, finally manipulating the man's face into a forced smile. Pockets' eyes widen, he smiles and speaks the line that brings tears to my eyes each time I hear it. He looks deeply into Peter's eyes and says, "Oh, there you are, Peter!" The rest of the scene plays out with Pockets convincing the other Lost Boys to give Peter a chance ... to take a risk and believe that he really is Peter Pan.

I'm sure some of you are wondering if I've finally gone off the deep end, and perhaps I have ... but I think there's a huge lesson in Pockets and Peter Pan. See here's the thing ... when no one else, including Peter himself, believed that he was indeed Pan the Man, Pockets saw what no one else saw. Pockets looked beyond the aging, tired, self-absorbed, workaholic Peter Banning and saw someone he loved ... Pockets looked deep within and saw the Peter Pan he knew, the Peter Pan he respected and admired ... Pockets saw the Peter Pan he loved. Even as I type those words, I can't help but think about the people in my life who have chosen recently to squeeze my face into a forced smile, look deeply into my eyes and say, "Oh, there you are, Terrie!" ... people who see past all the "stuff" and see that I'm still me. I may be a bit battered and bruised, and my clothes may be torn and bloodied, but at the end of the day, for those who care enough to take the time to look deeply into my eyes and say, "Oh, there you are, Terrie!" ... for those folks, they see that I'm still me.

For as grateful as I am for those whose love for me hasn't faltered or wavered or changed or gone away, I'm most grateful for my God ... my God who made me, my God who loves me, my God who sees so far beyond my "stuff" ... my God who looks deeply into my heart and says, "Oh, there you are, Terrie! There you are!"

"For God sees not as man sees, for man looks at the outward appearance, but the LORD looks at the heart.” 1 Samuel 16:7