The movie on the Hallmark Channel was called “The National Tree.” In a nutshell, the plot was that the current national tree in Washington, DC, had been struck by lightning and destroyed. A contest was held to find a replacement, then transport it to the spot, replant it, and light it for Christmas.
The winning entry for the national tree was from Rock, a 17-year-old boy in Oregon, who had submitted his entry as a video. Much of the movie had to do with Rock constantly videoing all activities around him and posting them on a VBlog on the internet.
The father agreed to give up the tree only on the condition that he and Rock would personally transport the tree across the country together. Naturally, to make a good story, there had to be challenges along the way, as well as a love story or two.
There were two things about the movie that I found memorable (three if you count that I learned we really do have a National Christmas Tree on the Ellipse south of the White House).
First, I was struck by the power of on-line communication. As the VBlog was shown daily across the world, a huge number of fans of “the tree” were connected. News travels at the speed of the internet. What used to take months to get a message overseas, now is instant. The world today is the small town of yesteryear.
Secondly, the actual story line was about the conflicts between generations as the younger one moves toward adulthood. The movie opened with snapshots of dad and a young son and showed a close, loving relationship. However, as the boy grew up, and boys surely do, the relationship between this father and son changed, as such relationships usually do. Smiles are replaced by irritated expressions. While little boys think their dad is smart, older boys often think their father is dumb, old-fashioned, and out-of-touch.
The father was trying so hard to hold on to the relationship of the past; the son was trying so hard to break free from the past and rush headlong into the future. Anger and resentment rose up on both sides and replaced the former joy. I realized that this scene repeats itself in most households.
A redeeming part of such relationships is that as twenty-somethings get older, their parents look smarter.
♫ Teach your children well,
Their father's hell did slowly go by,
And feed them on your dreams
The one they pick
is the one you'll know by.
Don't you ever ask them why,
if they told you, you would cry,
So just look at them and sigh
and know they love you.
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