My mom and I went to see this movie recently because well, it’s about an interracial adoption which we obviously appreciate, but it also seemed almost too unbelievable to be true. I wanted to see the characters for ourselves. This movie does not disappoint. It was so beautiful. I cried through a lot of it. You see this incredible deep love between this little boy and his biological mother. And yet even through all of his tragedy and loss, you see his precious heart still love his adopted family with as much intensity as he did his family in India. In fact, his capacity for love seems to even grow.
The movie Lion is an awesome story about a young Indian boy named Saroo, who comes from a close knit family in rural India. His family was very poor so Saroo and his older brother would try to do odd jobs around town to make money for their mom and younger sister. One night, Saroo begged his brother to take him with him on one of his night jobs that involved taking a train. Unfortunately, Saroo fell asleep while en route and he ends up getting lost on a train. He didn’t wake up until he was already many miles away from home, alone. It was a 2 day journey that ended with Saroo in a city where he didn’t speak the language and has a few near misses with children kidnappers. Ultimately, he ends up getting adopted by a couple in Tasmania, John and Sue Brierley (played by Nicole Kidman) where he grew up as a healthy adolescent. As a young adult, he begins to remember parts of his e
arly childhood and longs to find his biological family back in India. His only tools to track down the name of his hometown are his memories and Google Earth. It’s an incredible story. And it’s all true.
You see this story unfold and it’s as if this little boy’s life is guided and destined to become intertwined with the Brierleys. And while many adoption stories aren’t as adventurous, I believe many still carry that same feeling of destiny. A sense of the circumstances working out just right for a child to be brought home to a family.
It poignantly demonstrates how children have the capacity to love immensely and sometimes the dynamic duality of being grateful for your family while longing for your roots. It pulled all of my heart strings watching Saroo battle the highs and lows of his search for his biological family. How do you balance living in the present, when there are so many questions about your past? I struggled with this a lot as a child. I had so many questions about what my birth mom was like and why she gave me up. I felt rejected in the midst of being surrounded by a loving family. I was confused and curious about my past but so grateful for my present. My perspective about my birth mom’s choices has changed as I’ve matured and grown up but many questions still remain for me.
Every couple of months, I too, will binge search online (sometimes for hours) armed with the very few facts that I have about my birth family. Each time hoping to reveal another clue, to find another connection, to one day even find my birth mom. The truth is I’m scared and hopeful about the process at the same time. And the movie Lion has just tipped the scale a little bit more in favor of hope.
My mom had this to say about the film…
The true story was engrossing and extremely touching. I was captivated by the similarities
I have with the adoptive mother in the film; her emotions, her behavior, even down to her eighties style. I think I had the exact same perm when I adopted my kids. I felt very connected to her experience. Her love and concern for her children are very evident. This quickly took me back in time to the adoption of Liz when she was an infant. I remember experiencing the simultaneous joy of bringing her home and the wave of concern that we would be the best option for her because we were white parents responsible for this little biracial girl. It was very important to us to give her enough connection to her cultural roots. I wondered, “Could we do it?”
In the movie, Saroo struggled with his own identity, and his mom’s thoughts and prayers were with him. I was moved that she tried not to interfere with his search. Instead she yearned to help him find his past. This is a scary situation for adoptive parents. No matter how much you love your child, you must recognize that he has a past and a history without you.
By this time, the movie resonated with me so much that I was in the midst of our memories of our own situation and how it related to Saroo. It was so overwhelming that I grabbed Liz’s hand.
Nicole Kidman said it well. She stated that the film was about the “simplicity of love”. Love is so incredibly strong and enduring. People have questioned if we love our children as much as they love their natural children. We could only look at them blankly. Love is a powerful and mysterious force. Our children are everything to us.
Mom and daughter agree, the movie, Lion, is an excellent film that poignantly conveys the many dynamic emotions of adoptive parent and child. We’d love to hear you thoughts and stories in the comments below. What did you like the most about the film? Was there something special that you connected with? Let us know!
What an outstanding website, genuinely joyful I came across it! Shayla Brice Arthur
Yes, Yes, Yes!!! God work’s in mysterious ways!! This movie was so incredibly powerful for me! When I was 12, I recall being in my backyard, (just like the adoptive mom in the film), and the idea that I would not have kids biologically, but through foster care, adoption, or other means, was dropped into my spirit. It was so strong, that even though I never told anyone about it until adulthood,…I fully embraced it and went on about my life, knowing that it was true, and would happen in God’s time. About 2.5 years ago, I started to get a strong nudge that it was time to move forward with this dream. I looked up what it took to become a foster parent, and then proceeded to inquire about it through Social Services. I recall arriving there on 4th of July weekend, and even though the lobby was open, the office was “closed” and I was saddened that I would have to wait until Tuesday. The secretary saw how disappointed I was, and phoned the back to see if one of the Social Workers just happened to be there. Sure enough, there was, and she came out and explained the entire process to me. I signed up for the next rotation of classes, and completed all of them by February of the following year. In the interim, my nephew came to live with me. He was the exact age of the kids that I wanted to adopt (2 boys between 9 and 11). It was absolutely wonderful having him stay with me, though it was indeed a lot of work. He stayed with me for almost 1 year, and then, complications in dealing with his mom, caused me to have to pull back some, and let him remain with his mom, (my niece). My connection to him, made me a little hesitant to move forward with the adoption process because I did not want him to feel slighted in any way (he is still with me a couple times a week). Also, his mother is not the most stable, so I always keep it in the back of my mind that I could end up taking responsibility for him one day. Just recently, I had decided that it was time to move forward with the process. It seems to be about 6 months or so since I have even received a call from social services. Somehow, someway, immediately after this film was over, I receive a message on my phone from social services asking if I was available to provide foster care for two twin boys. Twins??? That is like my DREAM!!! The only problem was that the boys were 1.5 years old, which is out of my comfort zone, lol. I am a believer in Jesus Christ, and I most certainly take that to be a sign of something else to come, and that it is time for me to get ready. I mean, I was literally still in the theater,..the timing was impeccable!! I cannot wait to see what God has in store!!
This is such an awesome testimony of God’s timing. The adoption process can certainly be an emotional roller coaster. When it happens though, it’s almost an indescribable love. Thank you for sharing!!