I am going to need tissue this weekend

For those of you who may or may not know, I (Phillip writing by the way which I know is a shock for all of you, but I am writing in part to expound upon something written here once uopon a time) am a huge cryer at movies.
Lest you think it is just romantic movies or really powerful dramas - it's virtually everything. I have cried in comedies like "Liar, Liar" or Disney -- which brings me to the subject of the post.
This weekend ABC Family will be airing three Disney movies in a row on their channel - "Hercules," "Aladdin," and "Pinocchio.' I am not a huge fan of Pinnochio but absolutely enjoy the other two.
As a matter of fact "Hercules" is one of my three favorite Disney movies ever. Every disney movie has its morals that it tries to teach - which 99% of the time I am okay with. But, "Hercules" for me is one of the better. It teaches about Greek mythology which is so over-looked in our culture the real basis for modern story-telling and flawed characters in literature - Oedipus anyone?. It also teaches about someone growing into themselves and becoming who they are and what they are meant to be - sound like the gospel to anyone. The movie also shows the value of a work ethic as Hercules became who he was through dedicated effort on a regular consistent basis - nothing like working hard for what you get in life. Throughout the film as well there are some real solid examples of using one's free agency and learning to deal with the results (both good and bad) of exercising that agency.
For me one of the other things about the movie that I enjoy is the fact that it doesn't teach little girls to be the helpless damsel in distress who must be rescued from the big strong prince. I know fairy tales have their value in societ, but as a person with a Women's Studies minor (another story for a much different time), I can see how easily fairy tales and stories of a similar nature can pre-dispose a female to feeling disempowered or subjugated to a male throughout their lifetime. I certainly can't think of anybody who feels that they would want their daughter to feel that they are a helpless damsel in distress their whole life, but that could happen if there isn't enough exposure to strong women in film.
That being said, I air a personal beef about emotional/sensitive men. We exist and don't want to be thought of any lesser for sharing our emotions. I have pains (albeit different than a woman) about not being a father, yet I rarely if ever receive consolation from anyone about teh matter (not asking for it now - just making an observation is all). My wife is great at acknowledging my pain and frustrations, but she has come to know I am a sensitive man. Why does society at large think that men are emotionless creatures.
Okay rant over. Disney = great fun times. While I am not a fan of everything they do, I still find it a fun and entertaining way to teach a value/moral and then reinforce it with discussion and further study in the home.
So, if you have survived this post of mine I truly hope you can enjoy the Disney marathon this weekend. I will, but my tear ducts - that's a different story