This movie taught me valuable lessons on parenting.
On mistakes
Top made many blunders. He was cheated by the DVD player wholesaler to buy a bulk of substandard DVD players, he was cheated by the pawn shop to pawn his father’s Buddha pendant at 100,000 baht when it can actually fetch up to 4 million baht. He was caught off-guard when the shopping mall chain’s management refused to rent him spaces for his roasted chestnut stalls because the roasting caused smoke to stain the roofs of the shopping malls.
If the kids have motivation to experiment and try things out, why not let them? I think I will be more worried if my kids lead aimless lives. They have nothing to lose and all to gain. The younger they are, the lesser baggage they have, the lesser they have to lose. The knocks that they get will be valuable to their lives. Lessons that they could not have possibly gotten out of school. They can put their heart and soul into whatever they want to do and exercise their creativity and innovation without inhibitions.
On being mistaken
Top was one of a kind. His parents were not supportive. They only wanted him to study. In fact, he was thought of as a child lousy in his studies and his attempts to make money were seen as troublemaking. In fact, towards the end, his aim was really to help pay off his father’s debts.
On many occasions, he had dilemmas. He wanted to be his parent’s good child and his girlfriend’s good partner. He wanted to fulfil their expectations. He thought of giving up his dream. In the end, he followed his intuition to tend to his roasted chestnut business and walk off in an exam, he stayed on in Thailand instead of following his family to China, he separated from his girlfriend to focus on his business.
Not many of us can be so strong, to stand up against the criticisms. So by taking a step back and let the kids have space to roam, I think that is great help to the kids.
