The Lorax

It all started a few months ago, when a colleague of mine recommended I show "The Lorax" to my environmental science class. Predictably, some of them were tempted to write it off as "just a cartoon," but it sparked some great discussion in the class and serves as a reference point now when we talk about the human impact on our world's ecosystems. Just prior to showing it to my class, I brought the movie home to show it to my son. At first he just wanted to watch "Cat in the Hat," but he was mesmerized within minutes.

Jeremy, now almost 3, has watched "The Lorax" about 30 times at this point, and is currently asking to watch it again as I type this. It's infiltrated my consciousnes to the point where I started talking to him in Seussian rhymes as I was walking with him to Antonio's pizza last week. Despite its depressing edge, its environmental message is profound and I wonder how much he is truly absorbing at this point. I sometimes wonder if this much Lorax will influence his development later on. It will certainly be in the back of my mind as I plan out the Ecology book.