Christopher!!
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Archived from the IMDb Discussion Forums — Film and Television Discussion
— 4 years ago(June 21, 2021 12:55 AM)Christopher!!
This Father's Day, ABC News correspondent Will Reeve, on assignment in Alaska for "Good Morning America," reflects on his memories of his late father, actor Christopher Reeve.
Reeve's father, the legendary "Superman" actor, was paralyzed in an equestrian competition in 1995. Christopher Reeve became an activist and advocate for spinal cord injury research, founding the Christopher & Dana Reeve Foundation, before his death in 2004 at age 52.
Will Reeve, who developed his fascination with whales from his father, writes about realizing his childhood dream of seeing whales in Alaska and feeling reverberations of his dad all around him.
As a child, I was obsessed with a National Geographic documentary about gray whales. It's an hourlong exploration of their annual 5,000-mile migration from the frigid waters near Alaska to the fertile lagoons of Baja Mexico. The host of the special is dynamic and strapping and adventurous; he pilots a single-engine airplane over the expanse of the Pacific Ocean, sails with native Alaskans in a traditional whaleskin canoe, makes authentic tortillas with Francisco "Pachico" Mayoral, and in a dramatic and poignant final scene, slips over the side of a small boat in scuba gear to swim with a mother gray and her newborn calf as they begin their return trip north. It is compelling experiential journalism, and I knew from that young age that I wanted to be just like the man on my screen.
I wore down the tape on our VHS copy, watching the man in the middle of the action, fascinated and enthralled by his charisma and enthusiasm, by the way he moved. I fell in love with whales – they became and remain my favorite animal – and dreamed that when I got older, I'd go to see them up close, just like the man on my screen. Better yet, with him.
The man on my screen was my dad. We never got to see whales together. We never got to do a lot of stereotypical father-son stuff – no catch in the backyard, no birds and the bees, no driving lessons, no prom pictures, no college visits, no guy's dinners in New York City – because he was paralyzed when I was not yet 3 and died when I was 12. While I haven't been able to celebrate with him on Father's Day for 17 years, I honor him today with joy and a dream realized. I saw whales in Alaska last night, up close, and felt dad was with me.
In our short time together, my dad gave me everything: his love and attention, his values and passions. When he died, I was certain my purpose in life was to be him, to seamlessly carry on his legacy, to leave no separation between where Christopher Reeve ended and where Will Reeve began.
I quickly learned what a futile endeavor that would be. My dad was a hero to millions of people around the world. How could I ever live up to that? I worried I'd fail. Whenever I was asked what I hoped to do with my life, I'd say something about wanting to honor my parents, both of whom died before I reached high school. But quietly, I feared I'd never meet the standard.
I'm 29 now and have finally started to understand what honoring my dad actually means. I thought it meant following the roads he would want me to go down, or to live my life as his proxy, making up for lost time according to his thwarted dreams. Turns out, our parents want us to find out who we are and go be that. That is the ultimate form of honor.
Like many missing the main character every third Sunday in June, I never feel fully whole on Father's Day. But I find peace and strength in the fact that the greatest gift I can give my dad is to keep him in my heart while I follow it wherever it leads me.
It's an unfathomable privilege to get to do what I do. I travel the world and meet interesting people and tell important stories, as my job. My parents would be proud, but it would have nothing to do with being the man on the screen, and everything to do with me finding a life of fulfillment and meaning. In the past two months, I've been on a run of dream assignments: I've reported from Iceland, Italy, Arizona, Maine and Tennessee, with more adventures imminent. And, in a sweet case of sentimental symmetry, I'm now in Alaska on Father's Day weekend.
I'd dreamed of coming to Alaska because my dad loved it. We'd always talked about visiting together some day, maybe when he could walk again. What an ideal place to honor him on Father's Day weekend, I thought, especially since I'm here for a job that I cherish and work hard at.
I find peace and strength in the fact that the greatest gift I can give my dad is to keep him in my heart while I follow it wherever it leads me.
On assignment for "Good Morning America's" "Rise and Shine" series, Alaska has been the bucket list experience I imagined. My crew and I have gone dog sledding, kayaking, hiking and visited a wildlife conservation center, an aquarium and the Alaska Native Heritage Center. The Heritage Center was the first stop on our schedule. The drive from downtown Anchorage features the picturesque moun
