The history.

Kevin McAllister, a 10-year-old boy, along with his parents, siblings, cousins, aunt and uncle, head to the airport to board a plane for Florida. It’s Christmas vacation time. Kevin accidentally gets on the wrong plane. His family goes to Florida; Kevin goes to New York City.

Meanwhile, Harry and Marv, the Wet Bandits, escaped from prison and ended up in New York as well. They’ve been involved with the McAllister family before, so when they come across Kevin walking down Fifth Avenue, they decide to “get him.” From then until the end of the movie, there’s a ton of shenanigans.

Among other shenanigans, Kevin learns of the bandit’s plan to rob Mr. Duncan’s toy store after it closes that night, Christmas Eve. After many “close calls”, Kevin manages to thwart the thieves, his family comes to New York looking for him, and it all ends happily on Christmas Eve. And yes, Christmas Day is everything it should be: just wonderful.

In a deeper look.

Kevin doesn’t seem to “fit in” well with his family. There are several reasons for this.

1. Kevin has an older brother who is manipulative. She makes fun of Kevin, sets him up to fail, and then lies about it. Unfortunately, Kevin’s mom and dad believe the older brother; Kevin is sent to his room a lot.
2. Kevin watches his brother and uncle well, he can see their weaknesses and he doesn’t mind telling the truth about them in front of everyone. His parents, of course, are embarrassed by Kevin’s behavior and try to control him. But no, Kevin continues to defend himself and talk. So, he is the designated Black Sheep of the family.

On the plus side, Kevin manages to handle his crises quite well. Why? Kevin has high self-esteem. That’s how we know.

1. He thinks. (It may sound silly to mention this, but if you look at those around you, you’ll see that not everyone has that ability.) He really thinks; you can see it in his face.
2. He watches and plans. Very rarely does Kevin REACT to the situations he finds himself in; he shows that he is a problem solver whenever he is in a crisis.
3. He is independent, imaginative and competent. And take calculated risks. Witness the tests he puts “The Wet/Sticky Bandits” through.
4. Kevin is a “feeling” boy who is drawn to emotionally “safe” relationships. He witnesses his conversations with Mr. Duncan at the toy store and, of course, the conversations with the Pigeon Lady.
5. Yes, he is a great thinker, but he also has a BIG heart. Here are two good examples:
6. When she visits Duncan’s toy store, she learns of Mr. Duncan’s plan to give the proceeds from that day’s sales to St. Anne’s Children’s Hospital. She compliments Mr. Duncan on his generosity with the children. And later, when she finds out that the Wet Bandits are planning to rob Mr. Duncan’s store, she trips them up, they get nothing and end up in jail instead. So even though she is in danger from the bandits, she does “the right thing”. Kevin has a sweet heart.
7. The only other time we see her tenderness and care is in her last two encounters with The Pigeon Lady.

After the Pigeon Lady helps Kevin out of a sticky situation in Central Park, he is no longer afraid of her. Kevin trusts her enough to ask her two questions. And these questions tell us a lot about how his family sees him and, sadly, how he sees himself: (1) Am I bothering you? And (2) Am I being a pain in the ass now? The lady with the pigeons replies, “No,” quietly but very confidently in her voice. Kevin suggests hot chocolate as a treat for them. She agrees.

So, they go to the New York Philharmonic Orchestra’s instrument room (great stage if you like instruments) and talk. The Pigeon Lady reveals that she had her heart broken a long time ago and she no longer trusts people. She is withdrawn from the world. And so, for some time she has made her home in Central Park with the pigeons.

But Kevin says that he should take his chances again because if he tried, things might work out.

It is very encouraging. He tells her that when he was younger he had a pair of skates that he tried on several times in her room but he never wore them. He was afraid to skate on them. When he decided to use them, he had outgrown them. He suggests that if she doesn’t use her heart now, it won’t work for her later. *** (There is a lot of wisdom in this idea for all of us).

The Pigeon Lady responds to Kevin’s comments with the question, “But what if I get hurt again?” Kevin says that she can count on him to “remember” her. His response from her? “Don’t make promises you can’t keep, Kevin.” Clearly, she doubts him; she’s still too scared to really trust.

But, at the end of the movie, Kevin leaves his family’s Christmas celebration to go visit the Pigeon Lady. He has a present for her: a white turtledove ornament. Mr. Duncan, the owner of the toy store, had given her two of these ornaments before. Mr. Duncan told him that if he gave one away and kept one, Kevin and whoever gave him the other turtledove would be friends forever. Kevin’s message to the Pigeon Lady is that he will not “forget” her; he will always remember her. Everything ends well with the movie.

This is a feel-good movie: lots of humor but also some real depth. The perfect combination for the Christmas season. If you haven’t seen Home Alone Two – Lost in New York yet, you can give it a try.

Y: I hope you and yours have a very nice and peaceful holiday season!

Best wishes until next time,

John