If it wasn’t obvious – I love PANDAS. The giant panda is my spirit animal – we like to chill, eat, sleep, roll around and spend time alone. But when Happy Panda is not so happy – I look to the movie Kung Fu Panda for my boost of serotonin and motivation. Po’s journey to becoming the dragon warrior is so motivational and extremely relatable. So I thought I’d walk you through why I find this movie so motivational. (If you haven’t watched the movie – SPOILER ALERT)
The Beginning – Feeling lost
The beginning when Po is lost about what he wants to do in life. He struggles to find his passions but also struggles with adjusting to normal life as a noodle soup chef. Wanting to make his dad proud but also wanting to strike out on his own – I relate with this so much.
Finding your passions isn’t always easy especially if you don’t have anyone around that can guide you or motivate you.
The Middle – Finding your path
Po “accidently” gets picked as the dragon warrior and it is all that he is ever wanted. But Master Shifu and the others pick on him in the hopes that he will leave. This scene gets me every single time – I spent most of my 20s relating to this feeling.
Despite finding your path, it isn’t always the easiest to follow your passions. There are obstacles, naysayers and your own lack of self belief that makes that journey a lot harder.
The End – Finding yourself and believing in yourself
When Po finally gets the dragon scroll and understands its meaning.
We all keep thinking that if we were richer or smarter or more beautiful or thinner or taller – things would be different. But we don’t need no secret ingredient, we’re all already special just as we are.
And following it up with –
Through out the series Po is made to feel like he isn’t worthy of being the dragon warrior just because he is a big fat panda. So instead of fighting it, he accepts it and that completes his journey to become the dragon warrior.
When we accept ourselves for who we truly are we become invincible. This reminds me of this quote by Tyrion Lannister in the Game of Thrones – “Never forget what you are, the rest of the world will not. Wear it like armour and it can never be used to hurt you.” If you truly 100% own up to who you are no one can make you feel less.
This was a very random post inspired by my love for Kung Fu Panda. That movie will forever be one of my favoritest movies. Share movies or books that inspire you in the comments below.
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If you haven’t already, give my other recent posts a read –
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PS: I own none of the photos in this post
Happy Panda 
I love these lessons! I watched this movie a few times with my grandkids and was so happy to hear this message being told to kids, but sometimes it’s not real to them yet, but instead is more real to the adults watching. Laughable or not, life lessons are there to be absorbed if we’re open to the source we receive them! 😊
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I love the lessons too!
Truly glad that kid movies have evolved so much from the typical princess waiting to be rescued movies. I love that so many animated movies in the last decade have had a deeper meaning. 🙂
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Right?! The producers have realized that adults enjoy watching these movies and have been adding jokes and material that adults can connect with!
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What a lovely and fun and endearing post! I’ve never seen this movie but now maybe I need to! And I feel like these principles apply to people of all ages. It seems to take decades to truly know and accept thyself! Although I think it does get easier the older we get. Thank you M for this one! 🐼 💕
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Great inspiration 😉 Have a wonderful week ahead!
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Oh this was such a sweet and uplifting post! I loved Kung Fu Panda the first time I watched it too, for the same reasons you did. It’s so amazing to me how Disney movies actually have the best life lessons. I love that it means so much to you! For me, one such movie would be The Good Dinosaur. I easily get affected by the whole ‘not being able to deal with the crushing fear of failing to meet family expectations’ and this particular movie handles and resolves it beautifully. Normally I watch it when I feel like having a good cry because in the end I always feel comforted and I would wholeheartedly recommend it if you haven’t watched it yet❤
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OMG – this is my favorite comfort movie of all time!
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I haven’t seen that movie in such a long time but I remember so much of it because it was just that inspirational!
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You would have loved my school. Our mascot was the panda. We were the Pine Hill Pandas, and I had plenty of sweatshirts and t-shirts with cute pandas on them.
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OMG, yess! Your school chose the best mascot it could.
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Ugh I love Kung Fu Panda – the whole trilogy, in fact. One of the best trilogies even outside of animation I have ever seen. Many parts still make me laugh out loud and some still bring me to tears. The main characters are such excellent examples of character growth and development. Definitely one of my favourites!
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