Hairspray/John Travolta: retour à la case départ

Originally uploaded by xavierkr.

Have you seen Hairspray; the movie that elevates the role of laundress to a hip level of cool? John Travolta has been sexier in many other roles, but in his role as Edna Turnblad in Hairspray he turns a self-conscious, insecure, professional laundress into a loving, grooving bundle of joy. And isn’t that, and clean laundry, a beautiful thing?

While watching the movie it was hard to imagine a day when moms earned a little extra cash washing and ironing for their neighbors. Now, candle, jewelry, and scrapbooking parties help cover the groceries or the cute sweater in Anthropologie’s window. I actually avoided all those parties to make money and sold almost anything of value in this house on Ebay. The Lederhosen my husband’s grandparents brought from Germany earned me a cool $115 bucks last year!

But besides a few dollars that Edna earned in the movie, her character seemed to explode as she realized she could step beyond the laundry and poor self-image that kept her locked inside her house for years. Everyone in her family loved and encouraged her, but she let the dream of owning a coin-operated Laundromat die. If there is a Hairspray Two, there is no doubt that Edna would be living out her dream.

Tracy, Edna’s daughter, helped her mother see beyond the laundry that stifled Edna’s life. My own daughter opens my eyes to possibilities, music, clothes, and anything remotely hip that keeps me young, or young at heart or at least not feeling all of my 42 years.

While caring for my children is an amazing job, I’m equally glad that they have begun to care for me. At 13, my daughter actually knows that I have a life beyond her immediate needs and she encourages me to live it. The younger three will get it one day too. But ultimately I will always be their mom, and they will always expect a certain level of care. I see this as my 93 year old grandmother still tries to instruct my own mom.

Ironically, one of the other stars of the show (and you’ll know who he is if you have a daughter of almost any age) Zac Efron, was quoted in US Weekly showing great appreciation for his mother. (I only bought US Weekly because we’re heading to the beach soon, otherwise it is just trash, but good beachy trash!) Zac says, “I don’t make it long without my mom coming and cooking me a good meal or doing my laundry.” So I guess one of the greater lessons of Hairspray is that our children may stretch us, but they still need us to take care of them…and what a blessing that is.